The Jamaican Copyright Licensing Agency (JAMCOPY) is a non-profit organization legally incorporated in Jamaica. JAMCOPY is the national Reproduction Rights Organisation (RRO) and was established by Jamaican creators (writers, poets, journalists, playwrights, photographers, illustrators, visual artists, etc.) and publishers to manage their reprographic reproduction rights. Reprographic reproduction includes photocopying, facsimile, xerography, copying onto microfilm, duplicating, etc.

It is illegal to make unauthorized copies of copyright protected works such as books, magazines, journals and newspapers. Under Jamaica’s Copyright Act, creators and publishers have the exclusive right to decide when and how their work is reproduced, whether it’s being photocopied, scanned or downloaded.

Before JAMCOPY was established, it was difficult for those who wanted permission to copy materials to locate the copyright owners and it was difficult for copyright owners to protect their rights when copying was done illegally. Today, that has changed. In 1998, JAMCOPY was formed by Jamaican creators and publishers to solve those problems. Individuals, institutions and businesses now can conveniently and easily obtain legal permission to copy and copyright owners have a convenient mechanism through which they can receive compensation for the copying of their works.

JAMCOPY represents Jamaican creators and publishers. All the major Jamaican publishers are affiliates of JAMCOPY. Through bilateral agreements with similar agencies in a number of other countries, JAMCOPY also represents thousands of foreign creators and publishers. (For more information, please refer to the Repertoire Fact Sheet.)

Individuals or organizations wishing to copy works published in printed form obtain a JAMCOPY licence and pay a fee for the copying done. JAMCOPY then distributes those royalties to the copyright owners whose works have been copied.

If you make copies from published works such as books, magazines, journals or newspapers without permission from the copyright owner or without a licence from an organization such as JAMCOPY, you may be infringing copyright. A JAMCOPY licence provides a convenient and affordable way to obtain copyright permissions so that you don’t have to worry about infringing someone’s copyright.