Subsisting rights and registered rights — understanding the difference
One of the most common sources of confusion in AI and intellectual property discussions is the difference between rights that subsist automatically and rights that require registration. The distinction matters enormously.
The one-line version
Subsisting rights = automatic legal recognition of creation or control.
Registered rights = state-issued exclusivity after formal validation.
Subsisting rights — automatic from creation
- Copyright — arises when a qualifying original work is created and fixed
- Moral rights — arise alongside copyright, personally held
- Neighbouring rights — arise when a performance is recorded or broadcast made
- NILP rights — arise by virtue of having a commercially valuable identity
- Database rights — arise when sufficient investment is made in data compilation
- Biometric rights — arise when biological identifiers are commercially significant
Registered rights — granted after formal process
- Patents — granted by UK IPO, EPO, USPTO for novel inventions
- Registered trade marks — granted for distinctive signs and logos
- Registered designs — granted for visual appearance of products
Why AI pipelines engage subsisting rights, not registered rights
When an AI company scrapes the web, licences a music catalogue, or trains on photographs, the rights it encounters are almost entirely subsisting. No creator needed to file a patent on their song. No photographer needed a registered design for their image.
The CIP framework's scope
CIP focuses exclusively on subsisting rights. It does not address patents, trade marks, or registered designs. The five certification tracks all address the subsisting rights landscape.