Berne Convention
In the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works, a similar rule exists, but not for "classes of works" but considering individual works. Article 7(8) of the Berne Convention reads:
In any case, the term shall be governed by the legislation of the country where protection is claimed; however, unless the legislation of that country otherwise provides, the term shall not exceed the term fixed in the country of origin of the work. — Berne Convention, article 7(8).Again, application of this rule is not mandatory. Any country may "provide otherwise" in its legislation. To do so, it is not necessary to include an explicit exception in the domestic copyright law, as the example of the United States shows.
The Berne Convention also states in article 5(2) that the enjoyment and exercise of copyright
... shall be independent of the existence of protection in the country of origin of the work. Consequently, apart from the provisions of this Convention, the extent of protection, as well as the means of redress afforded to the author to protect his rights, shall be governed exclusively by the laws of the country where protection is claimed. — Berne Convention, article 5(2).This specifies national treatment, and also makes the existence of copyright on a work in one country independent from the existence of copyright on the work in other countries (lex loci protectionis).
Read more about this topic: Rule Of The Shorter Term
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