Overview
The Swiss copyright law protects Works of Art, irrespectively of its value and purpose. Works of Art are intellectual creations of literature and art with individual character (art. 2 (1) of URG, SR 231.1) Comprised in it are, among others, literary and musical works, works of fine arts (for example, painting and sculpture), works of applied and decorative arts (for instance, objects of daily use with aesthetic value) and architecture works; works with scientific or technical contents, such as drawings, plans, maps or plastic representations, as well as photographic, cinematographic or choreographic works. Computer programmes (no. 3 of art. 2 of URG), as well as certain services provided by performing artists, producers of audio and audiovisual media and broadcasting companies ("related rights protection", in accordance with art. 33 and following of URG) can also be under copyright law protection.

Protection conditions
The copyright law applies if the following minimum requirements are fulfilled:

The work of art must be based on human will and be the expression of a human thought (BGE 130 III 172 and following, E. 4.5). For example, random images, which do not result from human action are not protected by the copyright law. This limitation, particularly in the area of photographs, leads to major difficulties and requires a closer observation.

According to current jurisprudence of the Federal Swiss Court, the work of art must "rise above general conventional standards" and cannot represent any "routine-related work" (BGE 134 III 171, E. 2.3.1). It lacks individuality when there is a high possibility that a third party creates the same work, when performing a similar task (BGE 134 III 171, E. 2.3.1). In general, there is individuality when the work obviously differs from other representations of the same work category (BGE 113 II 196, E. I.2a).

Obtainment
The copyright protection is granted, without requiring any special procedures, if the requirements are fulfilled and subsists, irrespectively of the copyright © symbol (art. 5 (2) of RBÜ, SR 0.231.15) up to 50 (for computer programmes) or 70 years after the death of the copyright holder (art. 29 (2) of URG (Federal Law on Copyright). At international level, the Berne Convention for the protection of Literary and Artistic Works, among others, must be considered (RBÜ; SR 0.231.15). In relation to the protected Works under the convention, the holders enjoy in all the countries who signed the Convention, with the exception of the country of origin of the work, the same rights as the ones currently granted by the relevant legislation to the holders of national copyrights or that will be granted to them in the future, as well as the special rights granted in the Convention (art. 5 (1) of RBÜ).

Limitations
In everyday life it is nearly impossible to imagine that all uses of copyright protected works can be controlled by third parties. For this reason, the law excludes from copyright protection scope, among others, the own use, within the meaning of art. 19 of URG (with the exception of computer programmes). Furthermore, collective management societies, within the meaning of art. 40 and following of URG, contribute to support the compliant use of the works with the copyright law by third parties.