Abstract

The digital transformation of essential public services at the local level has encouraged Public Service Delivery Centers, as public service units, to create substantial volumes of digital content, including public service applications, databases on local broadcasting and culture, digital maps for tourism and agriculture, and digital agricultural extension materials. Although such works are protected by copyright, they are frequently reproduced for use in commercial training courses or unlawfully collected to develop fee-based private applications. These practices undermine the value of investments financed by the state budget and result in the unauthorized commercialization of public information resources. This article examines the legal status of public service units and the characteristics of copyright protection for their digital works, identifies relevant forms of infringement and unfair competition, and highlights inconsistencies among the Law on the Management and Use of Public Property, the Intellectual Property Law, and the Competition Law. On that basis, the article proposes recommendations for improving Vietnam’s legal framework for the protection of copyright and public intellectual assets in the digital environment.

Keywords: Copyright; digital transformation; public intellectual assets; public non-business services; public non-business unit; public service delivery center; unfair competition.