Intellectual property

Order Description
In the Australian High Court decision of Autodesk Inc v Dyason (No. 1), Dawson J. described the idea/expression dichotomy in copyright law in the following terms:

‘[I]t is true that it is often difficult to separate an idea from its expression, but it is nevertheless fundamental that copyright protection is given only to the form in which ideas are expressed, not the ideas themselves.’

Discuss this idea/expression distinction, with particular emphasis on the types of ‘expression’ that constitute subject matter capable of copyright under the Copyright Act 1968 (C’th). Why is it ‘fundamental’ that copyright protection is given only to ‘the form in which ideas are expressed’?