Restrictive Conditions for Free Uses of Copyrighted Materials under Omani Law and Their Implications for Users’ of Copyrighted Materials

The Omani Copyright and Neighboring Rights Law of 2008 contains a list of exceptions to the exclusive rights
of copyright holders. These exceptions allow people to copy and use copyrighted materials in certain cases
without paying any fees or obtaining any permission from the copyright holders. The exceptions cover free
uses for purposes like teaching, education, quotation in another work, dissemination of news etc. However, the
Omani Copyright and Neighboring Rights Law puts many conditions for such free uses. Some of these conditions
mirror similar conditions under the Berne Convention and other copyright conventions to which Oman is a party.
Other conditions under Omani law are more restrictive than those that appear under international conventions.
These additional conditions restrict the scope of free uses of copyrighted materials in Oman. Yet, some countries
like the USA and Canada, despite their being parties to the same international conventions, have much wider
exceptions under their national legislation. The paper, therefore, recommends that Oman should follow the
legislative approach of those countries in order to widen the scope of copyright exceptions for the benefits of
users of copyrighted materials in Oman.