Comprehensive Guide to Copyright Law in India: Protection, Evolution, and Key Legal Precedents

10th September, 2024 - 7:25 am Categories: Copyright Infringement 0 Comments

WHAT IS A COPYRIGHT?

The makers of unique works of arrangement, such as fictional works (including computer programs, tables, and gatherings with computer databases which may be expressed in words, codes, outlines, or in any other form, including a machine clear medium), theatrical, musical, and creative works, cinematographic movies, and sound copies, are arranged copyright, a well-informed property protection, under Indian law.[1] Terms used to convey ideas are protected by copyright law, not the ideas themselves. The Copyright Act 1957 asylums the fortification of fictional, theatrical, musical, and creative works as well as cinematographic movies and sound recordings under Section 13, of Copyright Act of 1957[2]. Books and computer programs, for example, are protected as fictional works under the Act.

Copyright states a package of special rights given to the proprietor of copyright by advantage of Section 14 of the Act[3]. These rights can be exercised only by the holder of copyright or by any other distinct who is therefore recognized in this respect by the proprietor of copyright. These rights include the right of variety, right of imitation, right of periodical, right to make changes, announcement to civic etc.

Copyright guard is spoken on all Original legendary, creative, musical or theatrical, cinematograph and sound footage work. Unique resources, that the work has not been derivative from any other basis. Copyright safety starts the moment a work is designed, and its process is intended.  How ever it is always practical to get a recording for an improved protection. Copyright registration does not refer any rights and is just a clear-cut resilient of an access in respect of the work in the Copyright Register well-preserved by the Registrar of Copyrights.[4]

Copyright, a method of intellectual property law, has unique works of writing as well as literary, theatrical, musical, and creative works, such as poems, books, cinemas, tunes, computer software, and architecture. Copyright does not defend actualities, notions, structures, or means of process, although it may protect the way these things are articulated.

But it does not protect notions, ideas, schemes, or tactics of doing something. copyright in your justification, but be cognizant that copyright will not protect the idea itself as unprotected in your written or creative work.

THE COPYRIGHT ACT, 1957

According to Section 14 of the Act, “Copyright”[5] means the accurate theme to the necessities of this Act, to do or authorise the doing of any of the following acts in respect of a work or any significant part thereof, namely in the case of a fictional, theatrical or musical work, not being a computer programme,

• to repeat the work in any material method with the storage of it in any standard by electrical means;
• to question replicas of the work to the community not being replicas already in flow;
• to show the work in civic, or connect it to the public;
• to make any cinematograph movie or soundtrack in respect of the work;
• to make any change of the work;
• to make any edition of the work;
• to do, in relation to a conversion or an edition of the work, any of the acts stated in relation to the work in sub clause (i) and (ii).[6]

HISTORY OF COPYRIGHT IN INDIA

Copyright law arrived India in 1847 through an enactment during the East India Company’s rule. According to the 1847 enactment, the term of copyright was for the period of the author plus seven years autopsy. But in no case could the total term of copyright exceed a period of forty-two years.[7]

The government could grant a compulsory licence to circulate a book if the owner of copyright, upon the death of the author, refused to allow its publication. The act of breaking comprised in a person’s unlawful printing of a copyright work for (or as a part of attempt of) “sale leasing, or exportation”, or “for selling, publishing or exposing to sale or leasing”. Suit or action for violation was to be introduced in the “highest local court exercising original civil jurisdiction.” [8]

The Act if provided precisely that under a contract of amenity copyright in “any encyclopaedia, analysis, journal, magazine or work issued in a sequence of records or parts” shall vest in the “owner, projector, issuer or provider.” Entering copies were restrained to be copies of the owner of copyrighted work. Significantly, unlike today, copyright in a work was not spontaneous. Registering of copyright with the Home Office was compulsory for the application of rights under the Act.

However, the Act also exactly kept the conservation of copyright in the author, and his right to sue for its infringement to the extent available in law other than the 1847 Act. In 1914, the then Indian legislature enacted a new Copyright Act which simply drawn-out most portions of the United Kingdom Copyright Act of 1911 [9]to India. It did, however, make a few minor alterations. First, it introduced criminal approvals for copyright infringement (sections 7 to 12)[10]. Second, it changed the possibility of the term of copyright; under section 4 [11]the “sole right” of the author to “produce, repeat, achieve or circulate a change of the work shall exist only for a period of ten years from the date of the first journal of the work.” [12]The author, however, retained her “sole rights” if within the period of ten years she published or authorized publication of her work a version in any language in respect of that language. The 1914 Act was continued with minor adaptations and changes till the 1957 Act was brought into force on 24th January, 1958.[13]

EVOLUTION OF COPYRIGHT IN INDIA

Before the Act of 1957, copyright protection was governed by the Copyright Act, 1914 which was the extension of British Copyright Act, 1911. The Act has been amended after 1957 in 1983, 1984, 1992, 1994 and 1999. In May 2012, both houses of the Indian Parliament entirely passed the Copyright Amendment Bill, 2012, bringing Indian copyright law into agreement with the World Intellectual Property Organization Treaties– the WIPO Copyright Treaty (WCT) and WIPO Performances and Phonograms Treaty (WPPT).[14]The amendments made in Copyright (Amendment) Act 2012 can be majorly considered into:

(1) Amendments to rights in creative works, cinematograph movies and soundtracks. The amendments simplify the rights in creative works, cinematograph movies and soundtracks, by if that right to copy a creative work, to make a duplicate of a cinematograph movie or signifying a sound-tracks now comprises ‘storing’ of it in any standard by electrical or other resources and therefore report some of the modern digital era challenges.[15]

(2) WCT and WPPT linked amendment to rights The duty under Article 11 of the TRIPS Agreement, Article 7 of WCT and Article 9 of WPPT is to deliver for ‘marketable rental’ rights for computer programmes and cinematograph movies. This right was presented in section 14 by using the word ‘hire’. The term ‘hire’ in sections 14(d)&(e) with respect to cinematograph movie and soundtracking, correspondingly, is substituted with the term ‘marketable rental’. [16]The main reasoning behind the extra is to limit the option of rendering the term ‘hire’ to comprise non-marketable hire and also to keep in sync with the extra (1999 amendment) of the term ‘hire’ to ‘marketable rental’ with respect to computer programme in section 14(b).[17]

(3) Writer-friendly amendments on mode of Assignment and Licenses Section 18(1) offers that the holder of a copyright in any work or potential holder of a future work may assign the copyright, and the provision to this sub-section explains that in the case of upcoming work, assignment will come into force only when the work comes into being. [18]Another provision under S. 18(1), introduced through Amendment Act 2012, offers that the writer of a fictional or musical work shared in a cinematograph movie or sound tracking shall not give the right to obtain sovereigns in any form other than as a portion of the movie or soundtracking[19].

(4) Amendments enabling Admission to Works

• Allowance of Necessary Licenses (Section 31B) [20].
• Allowance of Legal Licenses (Section 31C) [21].
• Rejection of copyright (Section 21)[22].

(5) Establishing enforcement and protecting against Internet piracy Section 53, bearing with overview of invading replicas, has been replaced with a new section provided that full boundary actions to reinforce implementation of rights by making facility to switch significance of invading replicas by the Customs Department, subtraction of invading replicas and supposition of writing under civil remedies. The new section 65A, presented for protection of technological protection measures (TPM) used by a copyright owner to protect his rights.[23] Section 65B[24]has been presented to give protection of rights administration info, well-defined under clause (Xa) of Section 2[25].

(6) Modification of Copyright Board and other slight amendments since the varied nature of matters being dispensed with by the Copyright Board, section 11 linking to the constitution of the Copyright Board has been revised to make it a body containing of a Chairman and two members.^[26]

RELEVANCE OF COPYRIGHT LAWS IN INDIA

Copyright ensures certain minimum safeguards of the rights of authors over their creations, thereby protecting and rewarding creativity. Creativity being the keystone of progress, no civilized society can afford to ignore the basic requirement of encouraging the same. Economic and social development of a society is dependent on creativity.

The protection provided by copyright to the efforts of writers, artists, designers, dramatists, musicians, architects and producers of sound recordings, cinematograph films and computer software, creates an atmosphere The Copyright Act, 1957 protects original literary, dramatic, musical and artistic works and cinematograph films and sound recordings from unauthorized uses. Unlike the case with patents, copyright protects the expressions and not the ideas. There is no copyright in an idea. to creativity, which induces them to create more and motivates others to create.

The Copyright Act, 1957 protects original literary, dramatic, musical and artistic works and cinematograph films and sound recordings from unauthorized uses. Unlike the case with patents, copyright protects the expressions and not the ideas. [27]

CASE LAWS

Sajeev Pillai v. Venu Kunnapalli & Anr[28]

Question: Does the writer of a work have a specific right to assert his authorship under Section 57(1) of the Copyright Act even after the work has been allotted?[29]

Facts: Giving to the plaintiff, Sajeev Pillai, a scriptwriter and movie executive, he carved a writing for a film created on the classic and deliberate the past of the main festival Mamankam. He hit a contract with the Kunnapalli-allied Kavya Film Company after discussion with Venu Kunnapalli. After Sajeev was first termed executive, his service was concluded and he was substituted. After that, the film’s recording was done, and Sajeev appealed that this was proficient by changing, meandering, and cutting his script. In light of this, Sajeev filed a lawsuit and demanded a number of releases.

Judgement: In attainment of the decision, the Court jagged out that Section 57(1)[30] first subclause gives the writer the buff to execute limitations on third parties. The writer is allowed, under the second subsection, to compensations from such a third party for any alteration, mutilation, or other changes made to his work, as well as any other manner that would be harmful to his honour or status. Due to this, the plaintiff had a matchless benefit in the case and could remain to proclaim writing over the work even after conveying its copyright.

Author: Utkarsh Ajmera, Co author : Anika Tarar in case of any queries please contact/write back to us via email to chhavi@khuranaandkhurana.com or at  Khurana & Khurana, Advocates and IP Attorney.

[1] Copyright | Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, Government of India, https://www.meity.gov.in/content/copyright (last visited Aug 28, 2024).

[2] Sec.13, Copyright Act, 1957.

[3] Sec.14, Copyright Act, 1957.

[4] Copyright law of India, https://copyrightservice.net/copyright/in (last visited Aug 29, 2024).

[5] Sec.14, Copyright Act, 1957.

[6] Sec.14, Copyright Act, 1957.

[7]Charul Tripathi, Historical development of law of copyright Copyright – Intellectual Property – India (2020), https://www.mondaq.com/india/copyright/978858/historical-development-of-law-of-copyright (last visited Aug 29, 2024).

[8]Indian Copyright Act, 1957,

https://www.education.gov.in/sites/upload_files/mhrd/files/upload_document/CprAct.pdf (last visited Aug 28, 2024).

[9]Copyright Act,1911.

[10]Sec.7-12, Copyright Act, 1911.

[11]Sec.4, Copyright Act, 1911.

[12]Sec.4, Copyright Act, 1911.

[13]Indian Copyright Act, 1957

[14]Indian Copyright Act, 1957

https://www.education.gov.in/sites/upload_files/mhrd/files/upload_document/CprAct.pdf (last visited Aug 28, 2024).

[15]Lawrence Liang, Fair Use of Cinematograph Films and Sound Recordings: Finding the Solution in the Amendment, http://docs.manupatra.in/newsline/articles/Upload/4679073E-10B9-48C6-A411-165A9A999D22.pdf (last visited Aug 28, 2024).

[16] The advantages of adherence to the WIPO Copyright Treaty, https://www.wipo.int/export/sites/www/copyright/en/docs/advantages_wct_wppt.pdf (last visited Aug 29, 2024).

[17] Wipo, World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) WIPO Lex (2012), https://www.wipo.int/wipolex/en/text/295578 (last visited Aug 29, 2024).

[18] Sec.18, Copyright Act, 1957.

[19] The Copyright Act, 1957 (14 of 1957), https://copyright.gov.in/documents/copyrightrules1957.pdf (last visited Aug 28, 2024).

[20] Sec.31B, Copyright Act, 1957.

[21] Sec.31C, Copyright Act, 1957.

[22] Copyright rules, 2013 & form, https://copyright.gov.in/Documents/Copyright_Rules_2013_and_Forms.pdf (last visited Aug 28, 2024).

[23] Sec.65A, Copyright Act, 1957.

[24] Sec.65B, Copyright Act, 1957.

[25] Sec.2, Copyright Act, 1957.

[26] Sec.11, Copyright Act, 1957.

[27] Copyright Act, 1957.

[28]  MANU/KE/5406/2019.

[29] Sec.51 A, Copyright Act, 1957.

[30] Sec.57(1), Copyright Act, 1957.