UNIT 1

COPYRIGHT
1. What do you mean by Infringement of Copyright? What are the determining factors measuring the
Infringement of Copyright?
2. What constitutes Infringement of Copyright? What are the remedies available for Infringement of
Copyright? ****
3. What are the remedies available for Infringement of Copyright? **
4. State the acts which do not constitute Infringement of Copyright. **
5. Explain what act constitutes and does not constitute Infringement of Copyright.
6. How to determine the Infringement of Copyright in Literacy, Dramatic, Sound Recording and
Broadcasting Reproduction Right? State the limitations of exclusive right.
7. Define Copyright. Discuss the rights of Copyright owner.
8. Describe the various rights of Copyright owner.
9. Copyright is a ‘bundle of rights’. State the rights enjoyed by an owner of Copyright. **
10. Discuss the rights conferred by the Copyright Act on the Author.
11. Briefly explain the works in which Copyright Subsists. ******
12. What is Copyright? Explain the works in which Copyright does not subsists.
13. What is Copyright? To what extent Copyright in literacy, dramatic and musical work subsists? Discuss.
14. Explain the scope of Artistic and Musical works with illustrations.
15. Explain the scope of Literacy work with illustrations.
16. When can Compulsory License be issued in Copyright? Who will grant the Compulsory License and
when it can be revoked? **
17. Enumerate the cases in which Compulsory License in Copyright maybe granted.
18. What is Copyright? Explain in brief Assignment and Licensing of Copyright.
19. Explain the modes of Assignment of Copyright under Copyright Law.
20. What is Copyright? Explain the Salient Features of Copyright Act.
21. Define Copyright and Explain the nature and subject matter of Copyright.
22. Define Copyright. What are the main features of a Copyright
23. Explain the main features of Copyright Act, 1957.
24. Describe the various modes of Transfer of Copyright.
25. Describe various modes of Transfer of Copyright. When Compulsory License can be granted?
26. What are the ways in which the Copyright work is assignable? *
27. ‘Intellectual Property Right are jus in re propria over immaterial things’. Elucidate.
28. ‘Intellectual Property Rights protect the novelty in the products of human intellect in whatever field of
human activity and endeavour’. Elucidate.
29. ‘Copyright exists in expression of idea and not in idea itself’. Elucidate.
30. ‘Copyright exists in the expression of idea and not in the idea itself’ Explain the statement in the light of
subject matter of Copyright. **
31. What are the Characteristics of Copyright? Explain.
32. What are the qualifying elements to be in existence in a work for its Copyrightability?

SHORT NOTES

1. Write a note on Copyright Board. *****

2. Computer Software and Copyright. ***
3. Nature of Copyright.
4. Dramatic Work.
5. Literary Works.
6. Cinematographic Work.
7. Doctrine of Fair Use.
8. Assignment of Copyright.
9. Copyright Societies. **
10. Statutory Exceptions under Copyright Act.
I. INFRINGEMENT OF COPYRIGHT

1. What do you mean by Infringement of Copyright? What are the determining factors measuring the
Infringement of Copyright?
2. What constitutes Infringement of Copyright? What are the remedies available for Infringement of
Copyright? ****
3. What are the remedies available for Infringement of Copyright? **
4. State the acts which do not constitute Infringement of Copyright. **
5. Explain what act constitutes and does not constitute Infringement of Copyright.
6. How to determine the Infringement of Copyright in Literacy, Dramatic, Sound Recording and
Broadcasting Reproduction Right? State the limitations of exclusive right.

INTRODUCTION

IP is an intellectual work which is produced by intellectual human brain. Ex:- Literary work, Musical work,
inventions, etc. It is an intangible property. It is described as property because it is capable of sale, purchase,
mortgage, etc. The owner if IP has rights over his intangible property. No one can make use of IP without the
consent of the owner.
In simple words, Intellectual property give rights of intangible property which is non-physical and derives from
ideas and skills and talent. IPR is made to protect their rights and the infringement. Its object is to motivated other
authors, painters and artists to come forward to show their original skills without being fear of that they will be
copied by others.
And the rights which a person enjoys with respect to his IP are his intellectual property rights. And the law that
protects the intellectual property rights is known as intellectual property law. It is indispensable in nature which
provide access to knowledge, experience and expertise that results to mutual benefit to all.
Example:
Copyright law protects the copyright of authors, musicians, etc.
Patent law protects the inventions of the inventors.
Trademark law protects the trademark.

COPYRIGHT

In short and simple words, copyright is basically a right to copy. One is allowed to copy the original work but only
if the author give the permission to the person.

Illustration:- A is a painter who created a master piece, and showed it to the his friend B, but B who is also a painter
copied his idea and draws a same piece and earn some revenue from it. Later when A get to know about the fact that
he copied his idea without his consent, then he sued him for infringement of copyright.

Copyright is a term describing rights given to creators for their literary and artistic works. It includes: literary works
such as novels, poems, plays, reference works, newspapers and database, films and artistic works such as painting,
drawings, photographs. It is an intellectual property, if a person owns the copyright to something, then he is the only
owner of it and also the decider that who can copy it. In short, Copyright is to reproduce the work in which
copyright subsists.

According to Sec. 14 of the Copyright Act, 1957, copyright means the exclusive right to do or authorize others to do
certain acts in relation to:
Literary, Dramatic or Musical Works
Artistic works
Cinematography film, and
Sound recording.
Copyright is a creation of statute. According to present law there is no such thing as a common law copyright. Sec.
16 of The copyright Act, 1957 says that no person shall be entitled to copyright or any similar right in any work,
whether published or unpublished, otherwise than this Act.

INFRINGEMENT OF COPYRIGHT

The right to copyright is an exclusive right of the owner of the copyright. Person other than the owner of the
copyright cannot do anything with respect to the copyright except with the consent of the owner of the copyright.
The owner of the copyright may grant a licence with respect to any interest in the copyright in the favour of
any other person. Such licence may also be granted by the Registrar of the Copyrights in certain circumstances. The
licensee may do anything with respect to the interest in the copyright regarding which licence has been granted to
him.

Infringement of copyright is a trespass on a private domain owned and occupied by the owner of the copyright.
Therefore, it is protected by law Infringement of copyright. Copyright infringement refers to the unauthorized use
of someone’s copyrighted work. Thus, it is the use of someone’s copyrighted work without permission thereby
infringing certain rights of the copyright holder, such as the right to reproduce, distribute, display or perform the
protected work.

K I. George v. C. Cheriyan
In this case the Kerala High Court observed as follows:
"A copyright in a work shall be deemed to be infringed when any person does anything, the exclusive right to do
which by the Act is conferred upon the owner of the copyright."

R G. Anand v. Delux Films,

In this case the Supreme Court held that "it is not necessary that the alleged infringement should be an exact or
verbatim copy of the original but its resemblance with the original in a large measure is sufficient to indicate that it
is a copy."

An infringement is not confined to literal and exact repetition or reproduction; it includes also the various modes in
which the matter of any work may be adopted, imitated, transferred, or reproduced with more or less colourable
alterations to disguise the piracy.

ACTS DEEMED TO BE INFRINGEMENT OF COPYRIGHT (Section 51)

According to Section 51(a), copyright is deemed to be infringed when,

1. A person without obtaining the permission of the copyright holder does any act that only the copyright holder is
authorised to do.
2. A person permits the place to be used for communication, selling, distribution or exhibition of an infringing work
unless he was not aware or has no reason to believe that such permission will result in the violation of copyright.

According to Sec. 51 (b), the following acts with respect to an "infringing copy" are deemed to be infringement of
copyright
1. When any person makes for sale or hire, or sells or lets for hire, or by way of trade displays or offers for sale or
hire an infringing copy.
2. When any person distributes either for the purpose of trade or to such an extent as to affect prejudicially the
owner of the copyright of an infringing copy
3. When any person by way of trade exhibits in public an infringing copy;
4. When any person imports into India any infringing copies of the work. But the import of one copy of any work,
for the private and domestic use of the importer is not deemed to be an infringement of copyright.

Gramophone Company of India Ltd. v. Birendra Bahadur Pandey,

 In this case, the Supreme Court explained the word "import" expressed in sec. 51 as follows: The word
"import" in sections 51 and 53 of the Copyright Act means "bringing into India from outside India" and is not
limited to importation for commerce only, but includes transportation across the country."
 Therefore, in Gramophone Company's case, the Supreme Court held that the word 'import' includes importation
for transit across India to Nepal.

Penguin Books Ltd., England v. M/s. India Books Distributors,

 In this case, certain books of British publications were imported from America and were sold in India.
 These books were imported into India without the license of its copyright owner, viz, an exclusive licensee, for
selling or distributing them in India.
 Therefore, the Delhi High Court held that the import of these books was infringement of copyright under sec.
51 of the Copyright Act, 1957.

ACTS NOT DEEMED TO BE INFRINGEMENT OF COPYRIGHT (Section 52)

Sec. 52 of the Copyright Act, 1957, is a comprehensive section. It provides for different kinds of works and the acts
with respect to such works which are not deemed to be infringement of copyright. Following are the different kinds
of works with respect to which sec. 52 specifies the acts which are not deemed to be infringement of the copyright:
1. Works other than computer programme
2. Computer programmes
3. The transient or incidental storage of a work or performance
4. Cinematograph film
5. Painting, drawing, engraving, a work of architecture, or sculpture or any work of artistic craftsmanship.

1. Acts not deemed to be infringement of copyright in literary, dramatic, musical or artistic work
The acts which are not deemed to be the infringement of the copyright in literary, dramatic, musical or artistic work
are as follows:

a. Fair dealing.
According to sec. 52(1)(a), fair dealing with a work (not being a computer programme) does not constitute
infringement of copyright in these works if it is for the purpose of:
● private use including research;
● criticism or review, whether of that work or any other work.
Similarly, fair dealing with a work does not constitute infringement of copyright in work if it is for the purpose of
reporting current events;
● in a newspaper, magazine, or similar periodical; or
● by broadcast or in a cinematographic film or by means of photograph.

Macmillan & Co. v. K. & J. Cooper

 In this case, it was held that merely selecting passages from the original textbook and knitting them together in
a guidebook does not constitute the abridgment of the copyright in the textbook.

E M. Forster v. A.N. Parsuram

 In this case, the English novelist E.M. Forster had written a novel "A Passage to India".
 This novel was prescribed by the University of Madras as a textbook for the students taking the B.A. degree.
A.N. Parsuram, the respondent, published a guidebook to that novel for the students.
 The action was brought against the respondent for the infringement of the copyright in the original work by the
publication of the guide book.
 But dismissing the action, the Madras High Court held that "guide" was an independent creation and not
infringement of copyright of original novel.
 The "guide" is a some kind of commentary upon the original work, designed to enable the students to give
effective answers to questions that may be set in the examination upon their study of the novel.
 b. Reproduction-
According to sec. 52. following acts of reproduction of a work do not constitute an infringement of copyright in the
followe circumstances:
i. When the reproduction is for the purpose of a judicial proceeding or for the purpose of a report of a judicial
proceeding: [Sec. 52(1)(d)]
ii. When the reproduction is by the Secretariat of a Legislature where the Legislature consists of the two Houses, by
the Secretariat of either House of the Legislature, exclusively for the use of the members of the Legislature: [Sec,
52 (1) (e)]
iii. When the reproduction is in a certified copy made or supplied accordance with any law for the time being in
force: [Sec. 52 (f)]
iv. When the reproduction is:
○ by a teacher or a pupil in the course of instruction; or in
○ as part of the questions to be answered in an examination
○ in answers, to such questions
v. When the reproduction is in a newspaper, magazine or other periodical or, an article on current economic,
political, social, or religious topics, unless the author of such article has expressly reserved to himself the right of
such reproduction: [Sec. 52 (1)(m)]
vi. When the reproduction, for the purpose of research or private study, or with a view to publication, of an
unpublished literary, dramatic or musical works kept in a library, museum or other institution to which the public
has access:
vii. When not more than three copies of a book (including a pamphlet, sheet of music, map, chart or plan) are made
by or under the direction of the person in charge of a public library for the use of the library if such book is not
available for sale in India: (Sec. 52(1)(o)]
viii. Sub-section (q) of sec. 52(1) provides that reproduction or publication of a matter does not amount to
infringement of copyright if it is a reproduction or publication of
○ any matter which has been published in any Official Gazette except an Act of a Legislature;
○ any Act of a Legislature subject to the condition that such Act is reproduced or published together with
any commentary thereon or any other original matter;
○ the report of any committee, commission, council, board or other like body appointed by the
Legislature, unless the reproduction or publication of such report is prohibited by the Government;
○ any judgment or order of a court, Tribunal or other judicial authority, unless the reproduction or
publication of such judgment or order is prohibited by the court, the Tribunal or other judicial authority,
as the case may be. (9)
ix. According to sec. 52 (1)(r), the reading or recitation in public of any reasonable extract from a published literary
or dramatic work does not amount to infringement of copyright in that literary or dramatic work.
x. According to sec. 52 (1)(l), the performance of a literary, dramatic or musical work does not amount to
infringement of copyright in that work if such performance is by an amateur club or society and is given to a
non-paying audience, or is given for the benefit of religious institution.
xi. According to sec. 52 (1) (n), the publication in a newspaper, magazine or other periodicals of a report of a
lecture delivered in public does not amount to infringement of copyright in that lecture.
xii. According to sec. 52(1)(r), the production or publication of a translation in any Indian language of an Act of
Legislature and of any rules or orders made thereunder is not an infringement of copyright (i)
○ if no translation of such Act or rules or orders in that language has been produced or published by the
Government; or
○ where a translation of such Act or rules or orders in that language has been produced or published by
the Government, if the translation is not available for sale to the public:
xiii. According to sec. 52(1)(z), the making of an ephemeral recording, by a broadcasting organisation using its own
facilities for its own broadcast by a broadcasting organisation of a work which it has the right to broadcast is not
an infringement of copyright. Similarly, retention of such recording for archival purposes on the ground of its
exceptional documentary character does not constitute infringement of copyright.
2. Acts not deemed to be infringement of copyright with respect to computer programme
Sec. 52 of the Copyright Act, 1957, also provides for certain acts with respect to computer programmes which do
not constitute an infringement of copyright as follows: (i)
a. Copies as protection against loss, destruction or damage of computer programme [Sec. 52 (1 (aa)]
According to sec. 52 (1)(aa), the making of copies or adaptation of a computer programme by the lawful possessor
of a copy of such computer programme from such copy does not constitute an infringement of the copyright if such
copy is made
● in order to utilise the computer programme for the purpose for which it was supplied; or
● to make back-up copies purely as a temporary protection against loss, destruction or damage in order only to
utilise the computer programme for the purpose for which it was supplied. (ii)

b. To obtain information [Sec. 52 (ab)]

According to sec 52(ab), the doing of any act necessary to obtain information essential for operating inter-
operability of an independently created computer programme with other programmes by a lawful possessor of
computer programme is not an infringement of copyright in that computer programme. Sec. 52 (ab) applies if such
information is not otherwise readily available.

c. To test the functioning of the computer programme [Sec. 52 (ac)]

According to sec. 52 (ac), an act is not an infringement of copyright in a computer programme, if it is an:
● observation,
● study, or
● test of functioning of the computer programme in order to determine the ideas and principles which
underline any elements of the programme while performing such acts necessary for the functions for which
the computer programme was supplied.

d. Copies for non-commercial use [Sec. 52 (1)(ad)]

The making of copies or adaptation of the computer programme from a personally legally obtained copy for non-
commercial use is not an infringement of copyright in the computer programme.

3. The transient or incidental storage of a work or performance [Sec. 52 (1)(b)(c)]

After the Copyright (Amendment) Act, 2012, according to sec. 52 (1)(b), the transient or incidental storage of a
work or performance purely in the technical process of electronic transmission or communication to the public is
not deemed to be an infringement of copyright in that work or performance.
But if the person responsible for the storage of the copy has received a written complaint from the owner of
copyright in the work, complaining that such transient or incidental storage is an infringement, he shall refrain from
facilitating such access for a period of twenty-one days till he receives an order from the competent court refraining
from facilitating access. But, if he receives no such orders before the expiry of such period of twenty-one days, he
may continue to provide the facility of such access.

4. Cinematograph film
According to sec. 52 (1)(u), inclusion of an artistic work in a cinematograph film is not an infringement of
copyright in that artistic work if
a. that artistic work is permanently situate in a public place or any premises to which the public has access; or
b. if the inclusion of that artistic work is only by way of background or is otherwise incidental to the principal
matters represented in the film.

According to sec. 52 (1)(y), in relation to a literary, dramatic or musical work recorded or reproduced in any
cinematograph film, the exhibition of such film after the expiration of the term of copyright therein does not
constitute an infringement of copyright in that literary, dramatic or musical work:
Provided that exhibition of film is accompanied by an acknowledgement
● identifying the work by its title or other description; and
● unless the work is anonymous or the author of the work has previously agreed or required that no
acknowledgement of his name should be made, also identifying the author.

5. Painting, drawing, engraving, a work of architecture or any work of artistic craftsmanship

 a. According to sec. 52 (1)(s), the making or publishing of a painting, drawing, engraving or photograph of a
work of architecture or the display does not constitute an infringement of copyright.
b. Similarly, sec 52 (1)(t) provides that making or publishing of painting, drawing or photograph of a sculpture
or any other work, craftsmanship if such work is permanently situate in a public place premises to which the
public has access does not constitute infringement d any copyright.
c. According to sec. 52 (1)(x), the reconstruction of a building or structure in accordance with the architectural
drawings or plans by reference to which the or building or structure was originally constructed does not
constitute infringement of copyright in the architectural drawings or plan.
Provided that the original construction was made with consent or licence of the owner of the
copyright in such drawings and plans.
d. According to sec. 52 (1)(v), the use by the author of an artistic work where the author of such work is not the
owner of the copyright therein, of any movid, cast, sketch, plan, model or study made by him for the purpose
of does not constitute an infringement of copyright in that work:
Provided that the author does not thereby repeat or imitate the main design of the work
e. According to Sec. 52(1)(w), the making of a three-dimensional object from a two-dimensional artistic work,
such as a technical drawing, for the purposes of industrial application of any purely functional part of a useful
device is not deemed to be infringement of copyright in that artistic work.

REMEDIES FOR INFRINGEMENT OF COPYRIGHT

CIVIL REMEDIES FOR INFRINGEMENT OF COPYRIGHT [SEC. 55]

According to sub-sec. (1) of sec. 55, where the copyright in any work has been infringed, the "owner of the
copyright" is entitled to the remedy by way of:
1. injunction;
2. damages;
3. accounts; and
4. otherwise as are or may be conferred by law for the infringement of a right.
However, if the defendant proves that at the date of infringement, he was not aware and had no reasonable ground
for believing that copyright subsisted in the work, the plaintiff is entitled to remedy of injunction only.

Jurisdiction of the Court in Civil Matters (Sec. 62)

Every suit or other civil proceeding arising under this Chapter in respect of the infringement of copyright in any
work or the infringement of any other right conferred by this Act shall be instituted in the district court having
jurisdiction.

The civil remedies for copyright infringement are covered under Section 55 of the Copyright Act of 1957. The
different civil remedies available are:

1. Interlocutory Injunctions
The most important remedy is the grant of an interlocutory injunction. In order to secure immediate protection from
a threatened infringement or from the continuance of an infringement, a plaintiff may apply for an interlocutory
injunction pending the trial of the action or further orders.
In most cases, the application filled is for interlocutory relief and the matter rarely goes beyond the
interlocutory stage. There are three requirements for there to be a grant of interlocutory injunction – Firstly, a prima
facie case. Secondly, there needs to be a balance of convenience. Finally, there needs to be an irreparable injury.

2. Permanent Injunction
If the plaintiff succeeds at the trial in establishing infringement of copyright, he will normally be entitled to a
permanent injunction to restrain future infringements. This injunction will operate only during the unexpired term of
the copyright.

Himalaya Drug Co. V. Sumit

 Permanent injunction was also granted in this case to the plaintiff for the infringement of his copyright in the
herbal database, as well as each herbal write-up/description that comprised the herbal database.
 The court stated that the plaintiff has expended considerable time, labor, skill, and money in preparing this
database of ayurvedic herbs, and since the defendants have chosen not to appear or controvert any of these
statements, the same stands established.

Ratna Sagar (P) Ltd. V. Trisea Publications & Ors.,

 In Ratna Sagar (P) Ltd. v. Trisea Publications & Ors., 1996 PTC (16) 597, the petitioner, a renowned publisher
of children’s books “Living Science”, sued respondent, who published the book “Unique Science” for the
copyright infringement.
 According to the plaintiff, the content available in the defendant’s book is deceptively similar to theirs. After
examining either publication, the court held the respondent guilty of copyright infringement and imposed the
perpetual injunction on such an act

3. Damages
Copyright owners can also seek damages under Section 55 Copyright Act of 1957. He can seek compensatory
damages which let the copyright owner seek the damages he suffered due to the infringement.

4. Owner to recover possession of infringing copies (Sec. 58)

According to sec. 58, all infringing copies of any work in which copyright subsists, and all plates used or intended
to be used for the production of such infringing copies are deemed to be the property of the owner of the copyright.
Therefore, the owner may take proceeding for the recovery of such infringing copies under sec. 58 of the Copyright
Act, 1957.
The owner of the copyright is also entitled to the remedy of conversion of infringing copies under sec. 58. However,
the owner of the copyright is denied the remedy of conversion if the opponent proves that:

● he was not aware and had no reasonable ground to believe that copyright subsisted in work of which such
copies are alleged to be infringing copies; or
● he had reasonable grounds for believing that such copies or plates do not involve infringement of the
copyright.

Microsoft Corporation v. Yogesh Papat & Another,

 In this case, Delhi High Court held that the plaintiff was entitled to an order for the delivery up of the infringing
copies of the software.

Hawkins Cooker Ltd. V. Magicook Appliances

 Hawkins cooker ltd, the famous Indian brand, sued Magicook Appliances for illicitly using their label used on
their renowned pressure cooker line registered under the Copyright Act, 1957.
 The defendants were also deterred from using the plaintiff’s cookbooks and were ordered to deliver up to the
petitioner company for damage all alleged product, books, and articles employed by the defendants in the
manufacturing of the offending goods.
 The plaintiff is also eligible to claim damages incurred by the defendants due to rendition of accounts.

5. Account of Profits
A plaintiff is entitled to opt for damages or for an account of profits. He cannot obtain both an account of profits
and damages. The basis on which an account is ordered is that there should not be any enrichment on the part of the
defendant and that the defendant should be deprived of any profit which he earned by wrongful acts committed in
breach of the plaintiff's rights.

6. Anton Pillar Orders

The Anton pillar order gets its name from the holding in Anton Pillar AG V. Manufacturing Processes. In certain
cases the court may, on an application by the plaintiff, pass an ex-parte order requiring the defendant to allow the
plaintiff accompanied by attorney to enter his premises and make an inspection of relevant documents and articles
and take copies thereof or remove them for safe custody. Such an order is called Anton Pillar Order.
The following elements are present in an Anton Pillar Order –
First, an injunction restraining the defendant from destroying or infringing goods.
Second, an order permitting the plaintiff’s lawyer to search the defendant’s premises and take goods in their safe
custody.
Third, an order that the defendant be directed to disclose the names and addresses of suppliers and consumers.

7. Mareva Injunction
The Mareva injunction comes into play when the court believes that the defendant is trying to delay or obstruct the
execution of any decree being passed against him. The court has the power to direct him to place whole or any part
of his property under the court’s disposal as may be sufficient to satisfy the decree. This is provided in Order
XXXVIII, Rule 5 of The Civil Procedure Code, 1908.

CRIMINAL REMEDIES FOR INFRINGEMENT OF COPYRIGHT [SECTION 63 TO 70]

Sections 63 to 70 under Chapter 13 of the Act provide for the offences relating to copyright infringement.
The principle penal provisions under the chapter are as follows:

Section 63: It states that when a person knowingly infringes or abets copyrighted work or any of the
neighbouring rights under the Act (such as performer rights, moral rights and broadcast reproduction rights)
he/she/they can be imprisoned for a minimum of six months and a maximum term of three years and can be
fined between Rs. 50,000 to Rs. 3,00,000.

Section 63A provides for an enhanced penalty for second or subsequent convictions with increased
imprisonment from one to three years and a fine ranging from Rs.1,00,000 to Rs. 2,00,000. However, if such
infringement is not made for the purposes of gain in trade and business, the courts can reduce the sentence to
less than one year and a fine of less than Rs.1,00,000 by providing adequate and special reasons for the
same.

It is important to note that criminal proceedings in such instances do not entitle the copyright owner to get
an injunction, that is, “if a convict infringer repeats the infringement the owner will have to initiate a fresh
proceeding. So, in such cases, it is advisable to initiate criminal as well as civil proceedings simultaneously
if the stakes are very high.”

Section 65A states that circumvent any of the effective protective technological measures that can be
applied to any of the rights conferred under the Act. Pertaining to copyright, performance rights are
punishable with imprisonment of a maximum of two years and payment of a fine.

Section 65 B states that removal or alteration of “rights management information” without authorization is
punishable with imprisonment of a maximum of two years and payment of a fine. Such removal or alteration
includes knowingly distributing, broadcasting or communicating to the public copies of work without
authority.

Sections 65A and 65B were inserted via the Copyright (Amendment) Act, 2012 can only be punishable by
applying criminal remedies. These provisions have purposely been drafted in a very preliminary fashion
“and a lot of scope has been left for judicial creativity so that it can be adapted to Indian conditions.”

Other provisions under Chapter 13 include penalties for offences like possessing or making plates to make
infringing copies of works (Section 65), using infringing copies of a computer program (Section 63B) and
making false entries in the Register of Copyrights (Section 67).
Section 64(1) states that any police officer not below the rank of sub-inspector may exercise the power to
seize infringing copies of work without a warrant. The offence under this section is considered a cognizable
and non-bailable offence.

Section 64(2) provides safeguards to the person against whom such seizure has taken place to make an
application to the Magistrate within 15 days of such seizure for restoring the seized copies. This provision
does not facilitate or permit infringement of any manner by the person who has been accused to have
committed infringement.

Girish Gandhi v. Union of India (1997)

In this case the court upheld the constitutionality of the section by reading the word “satisfaction” to mean
that “police officer will not act uncle and unless he has got some type of information on which information
he is satisfied and his satisfaction shall be objective”.
RIGHTS OF COPYRIGHT OWNER

1. Define Copyright. Discuss the rights of Copyright owner.

2. Describe the various rights of Copyright owner.
3. Copyright is a ‘bundle of rights’. State the rights enjoyed by an owner of Copyright. **
4. Discuss the rights conferred by the Copyright Act on the Author.

INTRODUCTION
"Copyright is an 'exclusive right' exercised over a work produced by the intellectual labor of a person. The
right which a person acquires in his literary or artistic work which is the result of his intellectual labor is
called his "copyright".
Copyright is not restricted to literary or artistic work. "Copyright" applies to different other kinds of works
also like dramatic, musical, cinematographic films, computer programs, works of architecture and sound
recordings, and any other work which is produced by the intellectual labor of a person.
These works are the brainchild of the author and the author can be deemed to be the parent. He would not,
therefore, like anyone else to claim authorship in his work. The work created by the author is the property of
the author. He, as an owner, has the exclusive right to reproduce, communicate, distribute, assign or alienate
his work for economic or personal gain.
He alone has the exclusive right to commercially exploit his work. He alone has the right to
reproduce his work in any manner, form, or medium. This lays the foundation for the economic rights of the
author.
The author may need the assistance of others in order to communicate the work in public. Those who assist
the author to communicate the work to the public spend time, energy, labor, skill, and creativity therefore,
their efforts need also be recognized and protected. These communicators of the work of the author are
referred to as the neighbors to the author and the rights, which emerge, to them are called neighboring rights.
The term copyright appears to be singular but consists of three bundles of rights, these are Exclusive
Economic Rights, Moral rights, and Neighboring rights.

RIGHTS OF OWNER OF COPYRIGHT

Copyright is a bundle of rights consisting of Exclusive Economic Rights, Moral Rights & Neighbouring
Rights. The scheme of the Indian copyright act 1957 concerning different kinds of rights is as follows:

A. ECONOMIC RIGHTS
Economic rights are those rights that help the author reap economic benefits or profits. As per Section 14 of
the Copyright Act, 1957, different rights are recognized for the works considering their nature. The section
provides that it is the exclusive right of the author to do or authorize the doing of the acts provided
thereunder. The important rights generally recognized by all types of works include reproduction rights,
right of distribution, and right to communicate work to the public.

1. Right of reproduction
This is the most prominent right which is acquired after copyright protection. This right authorizes the
person having such copyright to make copies of the protected work in any form. According to sec14(a)(i) of
the Copyright Act, 1957, the Copyright owner in a literary, dramatic, musical, artistic, cinematograph film
and sound recording work has an exclusive right to reproduce the work or authorize the reproduction of
work in any material form. The author of an artistic work has the exclusive right to reproduce the work and
it includes its conversion from two-dimensional to three-dimensional and vice-versa.
Reproduction also means making a copy in a different form, even if such copy is not easily
perceptible. Under the Act, the right to reproduction of literary work also includes storing it in electronic
form. This essentially means that storing into a computer or compact disk will amount to the reproduction,
even though the copy is in a different form when compared with the original.

2. Right of Distribution
Apart from the right to reproduce the work, the author is also vested with the right to distribute the work. It
is the right to put copies of the copyrighted work into the commercial market i.e. it relates to the control over
dissemination of actual physical copies of the work. The scope and extend of this right is not uniform i.e. it
differs with the work. Once copies are in circulation the right no longer exists i.e. the right gets exhausted.
According to the exhaustion principle, once the intellectual property rights holder has sold a product
to which its IPRs are attached, he cannot prohibit the subsequent resale of that product, as his intellectual
rights in that product are said to have been 'exhausted' by such sale.

3. Right to Communicate Work to the Public:

The exclusive right to do this vest with the author, irrespective of the nature of the work. Change in
technology has brought change to the nature of communication and also to the notion of 'public'. This has
enabled basically three kinds of communication, such being public performance, being carried on in the
presence of an audience, transmission through cable network and also wireless broad casting. And the right
to communicate the work through all these means vests exclusively with the author.

Garware Plastics and Polyester Ltd, and others vs M/s Telelink and others

The Bombay High Court through its judgment in this case tried to bring out the meaning of the term
communication to public. In this case the plaintiffs were producers of cinematograph films and the
defendants were cable operators who telecasted those films, for a prescribed fee, without authorization of the
plaintiff which was challenged by them as violating their right under Section 14 of the Copyright Act, 1957.
The question before the Court was whether the act of the defendants would amount to
communicating the plaintiff's work to the public. The Court held that the defendant violated the plaintiff's
right to communicate his work to the public guaranteed under Section 14 of the Copyright Act.

4. Right to make cinematograph film or sound recording in respect of work

A literary, dramatic, or musical work may be reproduced in the form of a cinematograph film or sound
recording only with the license granted for the purpose by the owner of the copyright in the work.

5. The right to create derivative works like sequels, spin-offs, translations, and other forms of
adaptation.
The derivative work right grants the copyright owner the ability to control the transformation of their works
into new works. Transformations can include annotating, editing, translating, modifying or making other
types of changes to the work. Some examples of activities that implicate this right include translating a
book, transforming a novel or screenplay into a motion picture, or creating an updated version of an existing
computer program.

6. Right of distribution
Right to distribute is an off-shoot of the right of reproduction. The person who owns the copyright owner
may distribute his work in any manner he deems fit. The owner is also entitled to transfer the whole or some
rights in favor of any other person while retaining others.
Distribution right (resale and rental right) is the right to authorize the copies of a work to the public.
Distribution of work can be by sale, lease, rental, lending, any transfer of ownership or possession of copies
of work.

B. MORAL RIGHTS
Moral rights are the English translation of the French phrase Droit moral. They are in addition to economic
rights, and they are inalienable. Moral rights safeguard personal and reputational rights, which permit
authors to defend both the integrity of their works and the use of their names.
In addition to the protection of economic rights, the Copyright Act also protects the moral rights of the
author. Moral rights flow from the fact that a literary or artistic work reflects the personality of the creator,
just as much the economic rights reflect the author's need to keep body and soul together.

Section 57 of the Act says that independent of the author's copyright and even after the assignment
either wholly or partially of the said copyright, the author of a work shall have the special right:
● To claim authorship of the work; and
● To restrain or claim damages in respect of any distortion, mutilation, modification or other act about the
said work which is done before the expiration of the term of copyright if such distortion, mutilation,
modification, or other act would be prejudicial to his honor or reputation.

The rationale behind moral rights was also explained in the case of Amar Nath Sehgal vs. Union of India.
In which the Delhi High Court held that in the material world, laws are geared to protect the right to
equitable remuneration. But life is beyond the material. It is temporal as well. Many of us believe in the
soul. The moral rights of the author are the soul of his works. The author has a right to preserve, protect and
nurture his creations through his moral rights.

The Court stated that the modification should not be so serious that the modified form of the work looks
quite different from the original. Moral rights remain with the author even after transfer. In the case of
Mannu Bhandari v. Kala Vikash Pictures Pvt. Ltd. and Anr, The Delhi High Court has held that:
These rights (moral rights) are independent of the author's copyright and the remedies open to the author
under Section 55. In other words, Section 57 confers additional rights on the author of a literary work as
compared to the owner of general copyright. The special protection of the intellectual property is
emphasized by the fact that the remedies of a restraint order or damages can be claimed: even after the
assignment either wholly or partially of the said copyright.

Thus even though an author may sell his economic rights to a publisher for publication, the moral rights
shall remain with him and cannot be taken away from him.
- Can Moral rights be waived?
Previously moral rights were treated like fundamental rights to an individual as they are not merely for the
benefit of the individual but as a matter of public policy, for the benefit of the general public.

But the single judge bench of the Delhi High Court in the case of Sartaj Singh Pannu vs Gurbani Media
Pvt Ltd & Anr in relation to whether the Director can also waive his moral right if any to be acknowledged
as the Director of a film held that:

The Court is not prepared to go as far as to deny the right of a Director to waive his right to be
credited as such if for any reason he does not want his name to be associated with the film. As long as the
waiver is voluntary, it cannot be said to be opposed to public policy.
Thus after this decision, the moral rights can be waived by the author if he wants to.

C. NEIGHBORING RIGHTS

1. Broadcasting Rights in India

The broadcasting organization is conferred with Broadcasting Reproduction Rights wherein the
organization is conferred with a series of rights with respect to the broadcast made namely,
a. reproducing the broadcast;
b. causing the broadcast to be heard or seen by the public on payment of any charges;
c. making any sound recording or visual recording of the broadcast;
d. making any reproduction or such sound recording or visual recording where the initial
recording was unauthorized;
e. selling or hiring or offering for sale or hire to the public any such sound or visual recording.
Following the operation of Section 37, the performance of any act under (a) to (e) shall require a license of
the broadcasting organization, or else the act shall be treated to be a violation of copyright. However
exceptions to the same have been provided in Section 39 of the Act.
These exceptions can be broadly categorized as;(a) for private use, (b) for purposes of bonafide
training or research,(c) for reporting of current events and(d) general exceptions as provided under Section
52 of the Act

2. The rights of performing artists in their performances of literary and artistic works
The rights of performing artists in their performances of literary and artistic works are in general covered by
the concept of related rights. If the rights provided by copyright apply to authors, related rights, also
known as neighboring rights concern other categories of owners of rights, other than the author.
The performances of actors, singers, musicians, and dancers are an integral part of the creative process in
presentations to the public. Since the very first performance recordings, in sound and images, it has been
accepted that performers should have some rights over those recordings and a share in the proceeds from
their commercial exploitation. The interest of every performing artist is not limited to purely monetary
compensation for the work he or she has undertaken.
WORKS IN WHICH COPYRIGHT SUBSISTS

1. Briefly explain the works in which Copyright Subsists. ******

2. What is Copyright? Explain the works in which Copyright does not subsists.
3. What is Copyright? To what extent Copyright in literacy, dramatic and musical work subsists? Discuss.
4. Explain the scope of Artistic and Musical works with illustrations.
5. Explain the scope of Literacy work with illustrations.

INTRODUCTION

"Copyright is an 'exclusive right' exercised over a work produced by the intellectual labour of a person. The
right which a person acquires in his literary or artistic work which is the result of his intellectual labour is
called his "copyright".
Copyright is not restricted to literary or artistic work. "Copyright" applies to different other kinds of
works also like dramatic, musical, cinematographic films, computer programmes, works of architecture and
sound recordings and any other work which is produced by the intellectual labour of a person.
As the subject matter of copyright is the work produced by the intellectual labour of a person, therefore, the
right to "copyright" is a right to the "intellectual property of a person." The 'exclusive right to copyright
exercised by a person includes his right to assign the copyright either wholly or partially in favour of any
other person. The owner of the copyright may also grant any interest in the copyright by licence in the
favour of any other person.
The exclusive right to copyright also entitles the owner of the copyright to restrain any person from
doing any unauthorised act with respect to the work in which his copyright subsists.

As in Bharat Law House, Messrs v. M/s Wadhwa Co. Ltd., it was observed that "Copyright is the
exclusive right to do and to authorise others to do and restrain others from doing certain acts in relation to a
literary work". "Exclusive right to copyright in a work also includes the right to reproduce the work.

WHAT IS WORK?

According to Sec 2 (y) of the Copyright Act, 1957, "work" includes the following:
i. a literary, dramatic, musical or artistic work:
ii. a cinematograph film:
iii. a sound recording:

Therefore following are the Different kinds of works under the Copyright Act, 195:
1. Artistic work [Sec. 2 (c)]
2. Cinematographic film [Sec. 2 (ff)]
3. Dramatic work [Sec. 2 (h)]
4. Literary work [Sec. 2 (o)]
5. Musical work [Sec. 2(p)]
6. Sound recording [Sec. 2 (xx)]
MEANING OF COPYRIGHT (Sec. 14)

According to Section 14 of the Copyright Act, "Copyright" means the exclusive right to do or authorise the
doing of any of the acts in respect of a work or any substantial part thereof.
Sec. 14 provides for different kinds of works and different kinds of acts which may be done or
authorised to be done with respect to these works so as to fall within the definition of "copyright". Section
14 gives different meanings to "copyright" with respect to the following different kinds of works as follows:
1. Literary, dramatic or musical work [Sec. 14(a)]
2. Computer programme [Sec. 14 (b)]
3. Artistic work [Sec. 14 (c)]
4. Cinematographic film [Sec. 14 (d)]
5. Sound recording [Sec. 14 (e)]

1. Literary, dramatic or musical work [Sec. 14 (a)]

According to sec. 14(a), in the case of literary, dramatic or musical work, not being a computer programme,
copyright means:
i. to reproduce the work in any material form including the storing of it in any medium by
electronic means;
ii. to issue copies of the work to the public, not being copies already in circulation,
iii. to perform the work in public, or communicate it to the public
iv. to make any cinematograph film or sound recording in respect of the work;
v. to make any translation of the work:
vi. to make any adaptation of the work:

2. Computer programme [Sec. 14(b)]

According to sec. 14(b), in the case of 'computer programme, "copyright" means to do or to authorise:
i. to do any of the acts which include acts with respect to literary, dramatic or musical work; (i)
ii. to sell or give on commercial rental or offer for sale or for commercial rental any copy of the
computer programme:

3. Artistic work [Sec. 14(c)].

According to sec. 14(c), after the Copyright (Amendment) Act, 2012, with respect to 'artistic work,
copyright means to do or authorise to do any of the following acts:
i. to reproduce the work in any material form including
a. the storing of it in any medium by electronic or other means; or
b. depiction in three-dimensions of a two-dimensional work; or
c. depiction in two dimensions of a three-dimensional work:
ii. to communicate the work to the public:
iii. to issue copies of the work to the public not being copies already in circulation;
iv. to include the work in any cinematograph film;
v. to make any adaptation of the work:
 4. Cinematograph film [Sec. 14 (d)).
According to sec 14 (d), after the Copyright (Amendment) Act, 2012, with respect to "cinematograph film,
copyright means to do or authorise to do any of the following acts:
i. to make a copy of the film, including
a. a photograph of any image forming part thereof,
b. storing of it in any medium by electronic

ii. to sell or give on commercial rental or offer rental, any copy of the film;
iii. to communicate the film to the public;

In Raj Video Vision v. K. Mohana Krishna,' the Madras High Court held that sec. 14(d)(ii) of the Copyright
Act, 1957, gives a right to the producer to sell or give on hire, or offer for sale or hire, any copy of the film
regardless of whether such copy has been sold or given on hire on earlier occasions.

5. Sound recording [Sec. 14 (e)]

According to sec. 14(e), after the Copyright (Amendment) Act, 2012, with respect to 'sound recording,
copyright means to do or authorise to do any of the following acts:
i. to make any other sound recording including storing of it in any medium by electronic or
other means;
ii. to sell or give on commercial rental or offer for sale or for such rental, any copy of the sound
recording:

WORKS IN WHICH COPYRIGHT SUBSISTS (Section 13)

According to sub-section (1) of sec. 13 of the Copyright Act, 1957, the following are the works in which
copyright subsists throughout India,
1. Original literary, dramatic, musical and artistic work;
2. Cinematographic film; and
3. Sound recording.

According to sub-sec. (2) of sec. 13, the copyright subsists in the works specified in sub-section (1) of sec.
13 if the following conditions are satisfied. (i)
i. The work is first published in India.

ii. If the work is published outside India, the author is at the date of such publication, or in a case where
the author was dead at that date, was at the time of his death, a citizen of India.

iii. In the case of an unpublished work other than work of architecture, the author is at the date of
making of the work a citizen of India or domiciled in India.

iv. In the case of work of architecture, the work is located in India India.

According to the explanation to Sec. 13, in the case of joint authorship, the conditions conferring copyright
specified in sub-sec. (2) of sec. 13 shall be satisfied by all the authors of the work.
Works in which copyright does not subsist [Sec. 13(3)]
According to sub-section (3) of sec. 13. copyright does not subsist:
i. in any cinematograph film if a substantial part of the film is an infringement of the copyright in any
other work;
ii. in any sound recording made in respect of a literary, dramatic or musical work, if in making the
sound recording, copyright in such work has been infringed.

According to sub-sec. (4) of sec. 13, the copyright in a cinematograph film or a sound recording does not
affect the separate copyright in any work in respect of which, the film or, as the case may be, the sound
recording is made.

According to sub-sec. (5) of sec. 13, in the case of work of architecture, copyright subsists only in the
artistic character and design. Copyright does not extend to processes or methods of construction in case of
architecture.

CASE LAWS

Barbara Taylor Bradford vs. Sahara Media Entertainment Ltd (2003)

 In this case Plaintiff sought a copyright infringement suit against,the Defendant for copying her novel
about a woman who rose from poverty to richness into a TV serial and broadcasting the same without
her consent.
 It was held that copyright is only available for the expression of ideas and not the idea itself. No person
can have a monopoly over an idea.
 If the manner of expression of the ideas i.e., the details, events, situations etc was depicted in the same
manner in the TV serial as in the book, a case for copyright infringement could be made.

Zee Telefilms Ltd. And Others. vs. Sundial Communications Pvt. Ltd (2003)

 In this case, the TV serial developed by the Plaintiff about the early life of Lord Krishna (Krishna
Kanhaiya) was copied in the TV serial developed by Defendant (Kanhaiya).
 It was held that since Defendant had copied the way in which the idea was expressed by Plaintiff in their
show and the scenes, background, storyline etc. were substantially similar to that of the Plaintiff, there is
a copyright violation.

Sweet vs. Benning (1855)

 In this case , the Plaintiffs were the proprietors of a weekly paper called “The Jurist” that published the
decisions of various courts of law along with appropriate marginal notes and headnotes.
 It was held that there is no copyright available over the parts of the judgment that were reproduced but
copyright is available over headnotes, marginal notes, etc.
COMPULSORY LICENSING

1. When can Compulsory License be issued in Copyright? Who will grant the Compulsory License and
when it can be revoked? **
2. Enumerate the cases in which Compulsory License in Copyright maybe granted

INTRODUCTION
A copyright license gives a person or entity (“licensee") the authorization to use a work from the copyright owner,
usually in exchange for payment. Copyright licenses may be exclusive or nonexclusive, and the rights that come
with them vary according to the specifics of each license.
A copyright owner may grant a license and transfer some or all of his rights to others to exploit his work for
monetary benefits, in exchange for a consideration. A license is different from an assignment as the licensee gets
certain rights subject to the conditions specified in the license agreement but the ownership of those rights is not
vested with him, whereas in the case of an assignment, the assignee becomes the owner of the interest assigned to
him. A license may be exclusive or non-exclusive.
One of the most common copyright license situations is when an author licenses their publisher to publish,
distribute, and sell their book. In return, the author receives compensation and/or royalties.
Sec. 30 to sec. 32B of the Copyright Act. 1957. provide for the grant of licence as follows:
1. Voluntary licence by the owner of the copyright. (Sec. 30)
2. Statutory Licence. (Secs. 31C, 31D).
3. Compulsory licence by the Registrar of Copyrights on the recommendation of the Copyright Board. (Secs.
31, 31A).
4. Licence by the Copyright Board. (Secs, 32, 32A).

VOLUNTARY LICENCE BY THE OWNER OF THE COPYRIGHT (SEC. 30)

According to section 30 of the Copyright Act 1957, the owner of the copyright in a work may grant any interest in
his copyright to any person by license in writing, which is to be signed by him or by his duly authorized agent.
A license can be granted not only in existing work but also in respect of future work, in this situation
assignment shall come into force when such future work comes into existence. Where a licensee of the copyright in
a future work dies before such work comes into existence, his legal representatives shall be entitled to the benefit of
the license if there is no provision to contrary.
The mode of license is like an assignment deed, with necessary adaptations and modifications in section 19 (section
30A). Therefore, like an assignment, a license deed in relation to work should comprise of following particulars:

1. Duration of license
2. The rights which have been licensed
3. Territorial extent of the licensed
4. The quantum of royalty payable
5. Terms regarding revision
6. Extension and termination
Voluntary licenses can be:
● Exclusive - The term exclusive license has been defined in Section 2(j) as a license that confers on the
licensee and persons authorized by him, to the exclusion of all other persons, any right comprised in the
copyrighted work.
● Non-exclusive – It does not confer the right of exclusion. It is a mere grant of authority to do a particular
thing that otherwise would have constituted an infringement. When the owner grants an exclusive right, he
denudes himself of all rights and retains no claim on the economic rights so transferred.
● Co-exclusive – Here the licensor grants a license to more than one licensee but agrees that it will only grant
licenses to a limited group of other licensees.
● Sole license – Where only the licensor and the licensee can use it to the exclusion of any other third party.
● Implied license – The author impliedly allows or permits the use of his work. For example, he had
knowledge that someone is using his work but he did not take any action.

COMPULSORY LICENCE BY THE REGISTRAR OF COPYRIGHTS ON THE RECOMMENDATION

OF COPYRIGHT BOARD. [SEC. 31, 31A, 31B]
The compulsory licenses are granted by the Registrar of Copyrights on the recommendation of the Copyright Board
in the following circumstances:
1. License in published works withheld from public (Sec. 31);
2. Licence in unpublished work (Sec. 31A).
3. Licence for benefit of disabled (Sec. 31B).

1. Compulsory licence in published works withheld from public [Sec. 31]

Sec. 31 provides for the compulsory license in published or performed work for their re-publication or re-
communication. Sometimes an owner of a copyright in the published or performed work may refuse to republish or
re-communicate to the public the work without reasonable ground during the term of copyright.
In such cases, a complaint may be made to the Copyright Board. The Copyright Board may hear the owner of the
copyright and may also hold a necessary inquiry. After hearing and holding necessary inquiry, the Copyright Board
may direct the Registrar of Copyrights to grant a licence to such person or persons who in the opinion of the
Copyright Board, is or are qualified to republish or recommunicate works that have been withheld from the public.

Super Cassette Industries Ltd v. Entertainment Network (India) Ltd, Mumbai, the respondents who were running
a radio FM channel under the brand name Radio Mirchi, made several attempts to obtain a license from Super
Cassette Industries ltd (SCIL) to play its sound recordings but failed to get it. The Copyright Board ultimately
issued them a compulsory license against which an appeal has been filed in the Delhi High Court.
After contemplating section 31, Court observed that in case compulsory license had to be granted to all,
then there was no need for any enquiry as envisaged by section 31. The court also opined that once the copyright
was in public, the refusal has to be made on reasonable and valid grounds. While making an order under section 31,
the Board had to maintain a delicate balance between the private rights and the copyright vis-a-vis- public interest.

2. Licence in unpublished work (Sec. 31A)

● An author of an unpublished or published work, who is a citizen of India at the time of making the
work, may die or become untraceable before his work is published. In such case, any person may
 apply to the Copyright Board for a licence to publish such unpublished or published work or a
translation thereof in any language.
● But the applicant has to advertise his proposal in a newspaper in the English language having
circulation in the major part of the country and where the application is for the publication of a
translation in any language, also in one issue of any daily newspaper in that language before he
makes an application to the Copyright Board.
● The Copyright Board upon receiving the application along with the copy of the advertisement holds
the prescribed inquiry. After such inquiry, the Copyright Board may direct the Registrar to grant the
applicant a licence to publish that unpublished Indian work or a translation thereof in the language
mentioned in the application.
● But the applicant who has been granted a licence may be directed by the Registrar of Copyrights to
deposit the amount of royalty in the public account of India or in any other account specified by the
Copyright Board. Such provision has been made so as to enable the owner of the copyright or, as the
case may be, his heirs, executors or legal representatives to claim such royalty at any time.

3. Compulsory licence for benefit of disabled (Sec. 31B)

● Any person working for the benefit of persons with disability on a profit basis or for business may
apply to the Copyright Board for a compulsory licence to publish any work in which copyright
subsists for the benefit of such persons, in such form and manner and accompanied by such fee as
may be prescribed and the Copyright Board shall dispose of such application as expeditiously as
possible and endeavor shall be made to dispose of such application within a period of two months
from the date of receipt of the application.
● The Copyright Board may, on receipt of an application under sub-section (1), inquire or direct such
inquiry as it considers necessary to establish the credentials of the applicant and satisfy itself that the
application has been made in good faith.
● If the Copyright Board is satisfied that a compulsory licence needs to be issued to make the work
available to the disabled, after giving to the owners of rights in the work a reasonable opportunity of
being heard and after holding such inquiry as it may deem necessary, it may direct the Registrar of
Copyrights to grant to the applicant such a licence to publish the work.
● Every compulsory licence issued under this section shall specify the means and format of
publication, the period during which the compulsory licence may be exercised, and, in the case of
issue of copies, the number of copies that may be issued including the rate or royalty.
Provided that where the Copyright Board has issued such a compulsory licence, it may, on a
further application and after giving a reasonable opportunity to the owners of rights, extend the
period of such compulsory licence and allow the issue of more copies as it may deem fit.
STATUTORY LICENCE [SEC. 31C, 31D]
i. Statutory Licence for cover version (Sec. 31C)
ii. Statutory Licence for broadcasting of literacy and musical work and sound recording (Sec. 31D).

i. Statutory Licence for cover version (Sec. 31C)

"Cover version" means a sound recording made in accordance with section 31-C of the Copyright Act, 1957. Sec.
31-C has been added to the Copyright Act, 1957 by the Copyright (Amendment) Act, 2012.

● Section 31-C permits the making of a cover version being a sound recording of any literary, dramatic, or
musical work. This sound recording is made with the licence or consent of the owner of the right in the
earlier sound recording.
● The person making the cover version is required to give prior notice to the owner of the copyright in such
works and to the Registrar of Copyright at least 15 days in advance of making the cover version as well as
the royalties in respect of all copies to be made by him.
● The royalties are paid at the rates fixed by the Copyright Board in this behalf. Sec. 31(c)(4) provides
● that "one royalty in respect of such recording shall be paid for a minimum of fifty thousand copies of each
work during each calendar year in which copies of it are made.
● The person making such cover version has to maintain registers and books of account with full details of
existing stock. He has also to allow the owner of rights to inspect all records and books of account relating
to such sound recording.

ii. Statutory Licence for broadcasting of literary and musical works and sound recording (Sec. 31D)
A literary or musical work and a sound recording that has already been published may be communicated to the
public by way of a broadcast or by way of performance by any broadcasting organization under section 31D.
● According to Sec. 31D, the broadcasting organization has to give prior notice of its intention to broadcast
such work to the owner of rights in each work. In this notice, the broadcasting organization states the
duration, territorial coverage, and royalties to be paid to the owners of the rights in each work.
● However, the Copyright Board shall fix different rates of royalty for radio broadcasting and television
broadcasting.
● The Copyright Board may also require the broadcasting organization to pay such royalty in advance to the
owners of rights.
● The names of the authors and principal performers of the work are also to be announced with such
broadcast.
● No fresh alteration to any literary or musical work, which is not technically necessary for the purpose of
broadcasting, other than shortening the work for the convenience of broadcast, shall be made without the
consent of the owners of rights.
● The broadcasting organization shall
○ maintain such records and books of account, and render to the owners of rights such reports and
accounts; and
○ allow the owner of rights or his duly authorized agent or representative to inspect all records and
books of account relating to such broadcast, in such manner as may be prescribed.

LICENCE BY THE COPYRIGHT BOARD. (Secs, 32, 32A).

 i. Licence to produce and publish translations. (Sec. 32)
ii. Licence to reproduce and publish works for certain purposes. (Sec. 32A)

i. Licence to produce and publish translations (Sec. 32)

● Section 32 of the Copyright Act provides that after the expiry of a period of seven years from the
first publication of a literary or dramatic work, any person may apply to the Copyright Board for a
license to produce and publish a translation of work.
● Where the work is not Indian work, any person may apply to the Board for a license to produce and
publish a translation in printed or analogous form of reproduction of a literary or dramatic work in
any language in general use in India after a period of three years from the first publication of such
work, if such translation is required for the purpose of teaching, scholarship or research.
● But where translation is in a language not in general use in any developed country, such application
may be made after the period of one year from such publication.

ii. Licence to reproduce and publish works for certain purposes. (Sec. 32A)
According to this section, any person may apply to the Copyright Board for a license to reproduce and publish any
literary, scientific, or artistic work after the expiration of the relevant period from the date of the first publication
of an edition of such work,
● if the copies of such edition are not made available in India, or
● such copies have not been put on sale in India for a period of six months to the general public or
● in connection with systematically instructional activities at a price reasonably related to that normally
charged in India for comparable works by the owner of the right of reproduction or by any person authorized
by him on this behalf.

The period prescribed are:

● Seven years for work related to fiction, poetry, drama, music, or art
● Three years for works related to natural science, physical science mathematics or technology
● Five years for any other work

An application for a licence to reproduce and publish work under sec. 32A may be made by any person to the
Copyright Board. Such application states the proposed retail price of a copy of the work to be produced. An
application is made in the prescribed form and is submitted along with such fee as may be prescribed.

Upon such application, the Copyright Board after holding prescribed inquiry may grant licence to reproduce the
work with the condition that
1. the applicant shall pay to the owner of the copyright in the work royalties in respect of copies of the
reproduction of the work sold to the public, calculated at such rate as the Copyright Board, in the
circumstances of each case, determine in the prescribed manner;
2. a licence granted under sec. 32A shall not extend to the export of copies of the reproduction of the work
outside India and every copy of such reproduction shall contain a notice that the copy is available for
distribution only in India.
ASSIGNMENT OF COPYRIGHT

1. What is Copyright? Explain in brief Assignment and Licensing of Copyright.

2. Explain the modes of Assignment of Copyright under Copyright Law.
3. What are the ways in which the Copyright work is assignable? *

INTRODUCTION
Assignment means; a task or piece of work assigned to someone as part of a job or course of study. It can be said
that an assignment is a task given by someone to another to perform a part of a job. It can also be said that it is an
act of transfer of rights or property from one person to other. A transfer of rights in real property or Personal
Property to another gives the recipient, the transferee, the rights that the owner or holder of the property, the
transferor had prior to the transfer.

An assignment serves two purposes:

● as for as the assignee is concerned, it confers on him the right of exploitation of work for a specified period
in the specified territory;
● for the assignor, it confers on him right to receive royalty on the work assigned.

The owner may assign copyright either wholly or partially for the whole or any part of such Copyright to any
person. The Copyright of future work can also be assigned, on the condition that assignment shall be effective only
when the work comes into existence. The assignment can be a general assignment or subject to some conditions.

Assignor- The owner of the copyright who assigns the copyright to the other person is termed as an assignor.
Assignee- The "assignee" is the other person to whom the owner of the copyright assigns any right comprised in
the copyright.

ASSIGNMENT OF COPYRIGHT (SECTION 18)

According to section 18(1), the owner of the copyright in an existing work may assign the copyright
● either wholly or partially to any person and
● either generally or subject to limitation and
● either for the whole of the copyright or any part of it.

It also states that Copyright may be assigned by the prospective owner of the copyright in a future work also.
However, with respect to future work, the assignment takes effect only when the work comes into existence. In this
regard, the “assignee” includes the legal representatives of the assignee, if he dies before the work comes into
existence.
Proviso: The creator shall not assign or waive the right to receive royalties to be shared on an equal basis with the
assignee of copyright, subject to certain conditions.
18(2) mentions that Where the assignee of copyright becomes entitled to any right comprised in the copyright, he
shall be treated as the owner of the copyright in respect of those rights. The assignor shall also be treated as the
owner of the copyright with respect to unassigned rights.
Video Master v. Nishi Production,
In this case the Bombay High Court considered the issue whether assignment of video rights would include the right
of satellite broadcast as well. The Court agreed with the contentions of defendant that there were different modes of
communication to the public such as terrestrial television broadcasting (Doordarshan), satellite broadcasting, and
video TV. The owner of the film had separate copyright in all those modes, and he could assign them to different
persons. Thus, the satellite broadcast copyright of film was a separate right of the owner of the film and the video
copyright assigned to the plaintiff would not include this.

MODE OF ASSIGNMENTS (SECTION 19)

1. No assignment of the copyright in any work shall be valid unless it is in writing and signed by the assignor
or by his duly authorized agent.

2. The assignment of copyright in any work shall identify such work, and shall specify the rights assigned and
the duration and territorial extent of such assignment.

3. The assignment of copyright in any work shall also specify the amount of royalty payable, if any, to the
author or his legal heirs during the currency of the assignment and the assignment shall be subject to
revision, extension, or termination on terms mutually agreed upon by the parties.

4. Where the assignee fails to exercise his rights within one year from the date of assignment, the assignment
in respect of such right shall be deemed to have lapsed, unless otherwise specified in the assignment deed.

5. If the period of assignment is not stated, it shall be deemed to be five years from the date of assignment.

6. If the territorial extent of the assignment of the rights is not specified, it shall be presumed to extend within
India.

7. Nothing in sub-section (2), (3), (4), (5), (6) shall be applicable to assignments made before the coming into
force of the Copyright (Amendment) Act, 1994.

8. If the assignment is contrary to the terms and conditions of the rights already assigned to a copyright society
to which the creator is a member, it shall be deemed void.

9. The creator is entitled to subsequent royalties in the course of future exploitation of a cinematographic film,
which includes his work, other than by way of exhibitions in a cinema hall. For example, the creator will be
entitled to subsequent royalties for satellite right, home videos, internet rights, etc. A similar clause has been
added for the case of sound recording also.
REVOCATION OF ASSIGNMENT (SECTION 19A)

According to sec. 19A (1), the assignment of a copyright may be revoked by the Copyright Board, because the
assignee may fail to make sufficient exercise of the right assigned to him. If such failure is not because of any act or
omission of the assignor, then the assignor may make a complaint to the Copyright Board under sub-sec. (i) of sec.
19A.
The Copyright Board on the receipt of the complaint from the assignor and after holding such inquiry as it
may deem fit necessary, revoke such assignment.

According to sub-sec. (2) of sec. 19A, no order of revocation shall be made within a period of five years from the
date of such assignment.

According to sec. 19A (3), Any such final order must be passed within a period of six months from the date of
receipt of the complaint. Delay in compliance shall oblige the Board to record the reasons thereof.

Deshmukh & Co. (Publishers) Pvt. Ltd. Vs. Avinash Vishnu Khandekar & Others;
In this case, the Bombay High Court observed that the assignment of copyright is valid only if it is in writing and
signed by the assignor or his duly authorized agent. There is no prescribed form of assignment. The assignee to
whom certain rights have been assigned by the assignor can be restrained by the court having competent
jurisdiction.

Radio Today Broadcasting Ltd. v. Indian Performing Rights Society

The Calcutta High Court in this case held that the lyricist, music composer, etc., and the members of IPR Society
are legitimately entitled to demand royalty from the plaintiff radio station. Although they have taken valuable
consideration from the producer of the song and therefore the ownership of the copyright over the lyrics for the
purpose of the preparation of the song is concerned has been acquired by the producer of the song under section 17
of the Copyright Act, 1957, but that is only for the purpose that nobody can make unauthorized use of the song
without the permission of the producer of the song. But so far as the copyright over the lyrics is concerned, the
lyricist continues to be the owner of the copyright over the lyrics if he has not assigned the copyright over the lyrics
under by way of assignment under sections 18 and 19 of the Copyright Act, 1957.
FEATURES OF COPYRIGHT ACT

1. What is Copyright? Explain the Salient Features of Copyright Act.

2. Define Copyright and Explain the nature and subject matter of Copyright.
3. Define Copyright. What are the main features of a Copyright
4. Explain the main features of Copyright Act, 1957.

INTRODUCTION

"Copyright is an 'exclusive right' exercised over a work produced by the intellectual labour of a person. The right
which a person acquires in his literary or artistic work which is the result of his intellectual labour is called his
"copyright".
Copyright is not restricted to literary or artistic work. "Copyright" applies to different other kinds of works
also like dramatic, musical, cinematographic films, computer programmes, works of architecture and sound
recordings and any other work which is produced by the intellectual labour of a person.
As the subject matter of copyright is the work produced by the intellectual labour of a person, therefore, the right to
"copyright" is a right to the "intellectual property of a person." The 'exclusive right to copyright exercised by a
person includes his right to assign the copyright either wholly or partially in favour of any other person. The owner
of the copyright may also grant any interest in the copyright by licence in the favour of any other person.
The exclusive right to copyright also entitles the owner of the copyright to restrain any person from doing any
unauthorised act with respect to the work in which his copyright subsists.

As in Bharat Law House, Messrs v. M/s Wadhwa Co. Ltd., it was observed that "Copyright is the exclusive right
to do and to authorise others to do and restrain others from doing certain acts in relation to a literary work".
"Exclusive right to copyright in a work also includes the right to reproduce the work.

MEANING OF COPYRIGHT (Sec. 14)

According to Section 14 of the Copyright Act, "Copyright" means the exclusive right to do or authorise the doing of
any of the acts in respect of a work or any substantial part thereof.
Sec. 14 provides for different kinds of works and different kinds of acts which may be done or authorised to
be done with respect to these works so as to fall within the definition of "copyright". Section 14 gives different
meanings to "copyright" with respect to the following different kinds of works as follows:
1. Literary, dramatic or musical work [Sec. 14(a)]
2. Computer programme [Sec. 14 (b)]
3. Artistic work [Sec. 14 (c)]
4. Cinematographic film [Sec. 14 (d)]
5. Sound recording [Sec. 14 (e)]

1. Literary, dramatic or musical work [Sec. 14 (a)]

According to sec. 14(a), in the case of literary, dramatic or musical work, not being a computer programme,
copyright means:
i. to reproduce the work in any material form including the storing of it in any medium by electronic means;
ii. to issue copies of the work to the public, not being copies already in circulation,
iii. to perform the work in public, or communicate it to the public
iv. to make any cinematograph film or sound recording in respect of the work;
v. to make any translation of the work:
vi. to make any adaptation of the work:

2. Computer programme [Sec. 14(b)]

According to sec. 14(b), in the case of 'computer programme, "copyright" means to do or to authorise:
i. to do any of the acts which include acts with respect to literary, dramatic or musical work; (i)
ii. to sell or give on commercial rental or offer for sale or for commercial rental any copy of the computer
programme:

3. Artistic work [Sec. 14(c)].

According to sec. 14(c), after the Copyright (Amendment) Act, 2012, with respect to 'artistic work, copyright means
to do or authorise to do any of the following acts:
i. to reproduce the work in any material form including
a. the storing of it in any medium by electronic or other means; or
b. depiction in three-dimensions of a two-dimensional work; or
c. depiction in two dimensions of a three-dimensional work:
ii. to communicate the work to the public:
iii. to issue copies of the work to the public not being copies already in circulation;
iv. to include the work in any cinematograph film;
v. to make any adaptation of the work:

4. Cinematograph film [Sec. 14 (d)).

According to sec 14 (d), after the Copyright (Amendment) Act, 2012, with respect to "cinematograph film,
copyright means to do or authorise to do any of the following acts:
i. to make a copy of the film, including
a. a photograph of any image forming part thereof,
b. storing of it in any medium by electronic

ii. to sell or give on commercial rental or offer rental, any copy of the film;
iii. to communicate the film to the public;

In Raj Video Vision v. K. Mohana Krishna,' the Madras High Court held that sec. 14(d)(ii) of the Copyright Act,
1957, gives a right to the producer to sell or give on hire, or offer for sale or hire, any copy of the film regardless of
whether such copy has been sold or given on hire on earlier occasions.

5. Sound recording [Sec. 14 (e)]

According to sec. 14(e), after the Copyright (Amendment) Act, 2012, with respect to 'sound recording, copyright
means to do or authorise to do any of the following acts:
i. to make any other sound recording including storing of it in any medium by electronic or other means;
ii. to sell or give on commercial rental or offer for sale or for such rental, any copy of the sound recording:

THE COPYRIGHT ACT, 1957

Copyright law existed in India even prior to its independence. The Copyright Law in India can be traced to Indian
Copyright Act, 1847. The Indian Copyright Act, 1847 was enacted during the East India Company's regime.
Later the Imperial Copyright Act, 1911, of the United Kingdom was extended to India as part of His
Majesty's dominion. Then in 1914, Indian legislature passed the Indian Copyright Act of 1914. To this Act was
annexed the modified version of the Imperial Copyright Act, 1911 for its application in India. Thus, prior to its
independence, the copyright law applicable in India consisted of the Indian Copyright Act, 1914 and the Imperial
Copyright Act, 1911 of the United Kingdom as modified in its application to India by the Indian Copyright Act,
1914.
After Independence, the Indian Parliament enacted the Copyright Law, 1957 to be applicable in India. The
Copyright Law, 1957 of India repealed the Indian Copyright Act, 1914 and the Imperial Copyright Act, 1911 of the
United Kingdom.

IMPORTANT FEATURES OF THE COPYRIGHT ACT, 1957

Following are the important features of the Copyright Act, 957.

1. Different works in which copyright subsists

The Copyright Act, 1957, specifies and defines different kinds of works in which copyright subsists. These different
kinds of works include literary, dramatic, musical, artistic, cinematographic film, computer programme, works of
architecture and sound recording.
2. Different meanings of copyright with respect to different kinds of work
Sec. 14 of the Copyright Act. 1957, gives different meanings to different kinds of works in which copyright
subsists.

3. Authorities and Registration of copyright

The Copyright Act 1957, provides for the authorities like Copyright Office, Registrar of Copyrights and Copyright
Board for the purpose of the registration of the copyright. However, registration of copyright is not compulsory
under the Act.

4. Ownership and assignment of copyright

The Copyright Act 1957, provides for that who is the 'first owner of the copynight. Sec. 17 of the Copyright Act.
1957, provides that under certain circumstances, persons other than the author of the work may become the 'first
Owner of the copyright. Sec. 16 of the Copyright Act also provides that the owner of the copyright in a work may
assign the copyright wholly or partially in the favour of any other person.

5. Licences relating to copyright

The Copyright Act 1957, provides that licence relating to copyright in a work may be granted in the favour of any
other person by the owner of the copyright. The Act also provides for the compulsory licence in Indian works
withheld from public and in unpublished work. Such compulsory licence is granted by the Registrar of the
Copyrights on the direction of the Copyright Board.

6. Term of Copyright
The Copyright Act, 1957, provides for the term during which copyright in a work subsists. Term of copyright in
published literary, dramatic, musical and artistic work subsists during the lifetime of the author of such work and for
sixty years following the year of the death of the author. Whereas in case of photographs, cinematograph films,
work of sound recording, the copyright subsists for sixty years following the year of publication of these works.

7. Copyright Society
The Copyright Act, 1957, provides for the registration of copyright society. A copyright society registered under
sec. 33(3) of the Copyright Act is permitted to carry on the business of issuing or granting licences in respect of any
work in which copyright subsists.

8. Rights of Broadcasting Organisation and of Performers

According to sec. 37 of the Copyright Act, 1957, every broadcasting organisation shall have a special right to be
known as "broadcast reproduction right" in respect of its broadcasts. Similarly, sec. 38 of the Copyright Act
provides that where any performer appears or engages in any performance, he shall have a special right to be known
as the "performer's right" in relation to such performance.

9. Infringement of copyright
Sec. 51 of the Copyright Act, 1957, provides for the acts which are deemed to be the infringements of copyright in a
work. On the other hand, sec. 52 of the Copyright Act provides for the acts which are not deemed to constitute an
infringement of copyright in a work.

10. Remedies against the infringement of copyright

The Copyright Act. 1957, provides for the civil as well as criminal remedy against the infringement of copyright.
The Act, provides for 'civil remedies in the form of injunction, damages or accounts against the infringement of
copyright. Similarly, punishment in the form of 'imprisonment and 'fine' is provided as a criminal remedy for the
offence of infringement of copyright under the Copyright Act, 1957.

FEATURES OF COPYRIGHT
The essential feature of Copyright are-

1. Creation of statute
The Copyright Act, 1957 grants the Copyright and the rights and responsibilities attached to it. There is no other
common law right and there will be no existence of any work as copyright which is not given in section 16 of the
Copyright Act.
Section 16 of the Act states that No person shall be entitled to copyright or any similar right in any work,
whether published or unpublished, otherwise than under and in accordance with the provisions of this Act

2. Multiple Rights/ Bundle of rights

Copyright is not a single right. It consists of a bundle of different rights in the same work. For instance, in the case
of literary work, it comprises of right to adaptation, and right to reproduction of work, right to translation, right to
change the work into a cinematographic version, and right to serial publication or work.
Copyright also gives the monopoly right to the author or artist. It also gives the right to protect his work
from unauthorized reproduction or exploitation and restrain others from copying the work.
 3. Neighbouring Rights:
Copyright consists not merely of the right to reproduction. It also consists of the right to works derived from the
original works; rights like the right of public performance, the recording right and the broadcasting right which are
as important or even more than the right of reproduction. Such related rights are termed "neighbouring rights".

4. It purely exists in the expression of the idea

The copyright exists only for the original work. The mere idea to do a job is not to be used as copyright. For
instance, if a brilliant person has an idea for a book but he does not do anything to express the idea, he cannot claim
the copyright for that mere idea because the idea should be expressed.

5. The work must be original

The originality of the work is the main essential requirement for claiming the copyright. The work which is going
for copyright must be the original work of that person. The work which is not copied by another person is called
original work.

6. Some Forms of Intellectual Property:

A copyright is a form of intellectual property since the product over which the right is granted, e.g., a literary work,
is the result of utilization and investment of intellect. It is the work produced by the intellectual labour of a person,
therefore, the right to "copyright" is a right to the "intellectual property of a person.

7. Monopoly Right:
Copyright is a monopoly right restraining others from exercising that right which has been conferred on the owner
of the copyright under the provisions of the Act. The owner of the Copyright has the right to sue any person who is
making unauthorised use of his Copyright.

8. Negative Right:
Copyright is a negative right meaning thereby that it is prohibitory in nature. It is a right to prevent others from
copying or reproducing the work.

9. Object of Copyright:
The object of copyright law is to encourage authors, composers and artists to create original works by rewarding
them with the exclusive right for a specified period to reproduce the works for publishing and selling them to the
public.
The foundation of Indian Copyright Law, which is of English origin and provenance has a moral basis, and
is based on the Eighth Commandment, "Thou Shalt not Steal" (as held by the Supreme Court in R.G. Anand Case
1978).
TRANSFER OF COPYRIGHT

1. Describe the various modes of Transfer of Copyright.

2. Describe various modes of Transfer of Copyright. When Compulsory License can be granted?

INTRODUCITON (Answer I)

WAYS OF INITIATING COPYRIGHT TRANSFER

Initiating a copyright transfer in India is a crucial step in the realm of intellectual property, whereby creators
and authors are allowed to grant their rights to third parties for mutual benefit. These rights include
exclusive control over the use of the work, its distribution, reproduction, and publication throughout India.
Understanding the different methods of effecting a copyright transfer is essential for both creators and
recipients. Copyright subsists with the original owner or author of the work for the entire span of his lifetime
plus sixty years from his death, and at any point of time within this duration, the rights can be transferred in
the manners discussed below.

1. COPYRIGHT LICENSING
2. COPYRIGHT ASSIGNMENT

3. COPYRIGHT TRANSMISSION
If the owner of the copyright dies, who was working on a manuscript of dramatic, literary, artistic, or
musical work and was unable to publish the manuscript before dying, then, in that case, the copyright
ownership is transmitted to the person stated in his will.

4. COPYRIGHT RELINQUISHMENT
Copyright relinquishment refers to the voluntary surrender or abandonment of all or specific rights vested to
the author of a copyrighted work. For this, the Copyright owner will have to give notice to the Registrar of
Copyrights in the prescribed form. The rights shall cease to exist from the date of the notice. The registrar
shall cause the notice to be published in the Official Gazette, once he receives such notice, or he may cause
the notice to be published in such a manner as he deems fit.

CONCLUSION
In the ever-evolving landscape of creativity and intellectual property, copyright transfer emerges as a vital
mechanism for creators to protect and share their works. Whether through licensing or assignment, the
transfer of copyright enables innovation, collaboration, and the responsible utilization of creative works. By
understanding the intricacies and importance of copyright transfer, both creators and recipients can navigate
the complex terrain of intellectual property, fostering a thriving ecosystem that respects the rights of creators
while promoting the free flow of ideas. Embracing copyright transfer as a tool for empowerment and
growth, we pave the way for a future where creativity flourishes and society benefits from the collective
wealth of human expression.
SHORT NOTES

I. COPYRIGHT BOARD *****

SECTION 9 - COPYRIGHT OFFICE

To apply and administer the provisions of the Copy right Act, a copy right office has been established under
the control of the Registrar of Copyright, who acts under the superintendence and directions of the Central
Government. There shall be a seal for the copyright office.

SECTION 10 - REGISTRAR AND DEPUTY REGISTRARS OF COPYRIGHT

The Central Government appoints a Registrar of Copyrights and it also appoints one or more deputy
registrars of Copyrights.
The Deputy registrar of copyrights discharges the assigned function by the registrar of copyrights under his
superintendence and direction.

SECTION 11 - COPYRIGHT BOARD

The central government constitutes a Board called the Copyright Board which consists of a Chairman and
not less than two or more than fourteen other members.
The chairman and other members of the Copyright Board holds office for a period not exceeding five years
and also eligible for reappointment. He works under the prescribed terms and conditions stipulated by the
Central Government.
The chairman of the Copyright Board is a person who is or has been a judge of a High Court or is qualified
for the appointment as a judge of High Court.
The registrar of copyright is the Secretary of the Copyright Board and performs prescribed functions.

SECTION 12 - POWERS AND PROCEDURE OF COPYRIGHT BOARD.

The copyright board has the power to regulate its own procedure including the fixing of places and times of
its sittings.
However the Copyright Board ordinarily hears any proceeding within the zone in which the person
instituting the proceeding actually and voluntarily resides or carries on business or personally works for
gain.
The copyright board exercises its power and functions through Benches constituted by the Chairman of the
Copyright Board from amongst its members. Each bench consists of not less than three members.
However, if the chairman is of opinion that any matter of importance is required to be heard by a larger
bench, then he may refer the matter to a ‘Special Bench’ consisting of five members.
If there is a difference of opinion among the members of the Copyright Board or any of its Benches in any
decision the opinion of the majority if the members prevails.
However if there is no such majority then the opinion of the chairman prevails.
The Chairman may also authorize any of its members to exercise any of his powers . Any order made or any
act done in exercise of the powers by the authorised member is deemed to be the order or act of the Board.
If a member of the Copyright Board has got any personal interest in any matter, then he should not take part
in any proceedings before the Board in respect of such matter.
The existence of any vacancy or defect in the constitution of the Board is not a ground to question any act
done or proceeding taken by the Copyright Board.
The Copyright Board is deemed to be a Civil Court for the purposes of Section 345 and 346 of the COde of
Criminal Procedure 1973 and all proceeding before the Board is deemed as judicial proceedings.

FUNCTIONS OF COPYRIGHT BOARD

The following are the main functions of the Copyright Board:

I. Question regarding publication of work or date of publication of work (Section 6a)

If any question arises as to whether a work has been published or as to date on which the work was
published, then such dispute can be decided by the copyright board.

II. Question regarding the shorter term of the copyright in other country (Section 6b)
If any question arises as to whether the term of copyright for any work shorter in any other country
than that is provided in respect of that work under this Act, then such question can be referred to the
copyright board whose decision thereon is final.

III. Disputes in respect of Assignment of Copyright (Section 19A)

a. If an assignee fails to make sufficient exercise of the copyrights assigned to him and if such failure is
not attributable to any act or omission of the assignor, then the copyright board may, on receipt of a
complaint from the assignor and after holding such inquiry as it deems necessary, revoke such
assignment.
b. If any dispute arises with respect to the assignment of any copyright, the Copyright Board may, on
receipt of a complaint from the aggrieved party and after holding necessary inquiry, pass necessary
orders including an order for the recovery of any royalty payable.
However, Copyright Board can pass any order to revoke the assignment only if it is satisfied that the
terms of assignment are harsh to the assignor in case the assignor is also the author.
Further, no order of revocation of assignment can be made within a period of five years from the date
of such assignment.
II. COMPUTER SOFTWARE AND COPYRIGHT

INTRODUCTION

Copyright was usually associated with artistic products, but today in addition to all this copyright is now an
important tool in protecting computer software.
In the 1970s and 1980s, there were extensive discussions on whether the patent system, the copyright
system, or a sui generis system, should provide protection for computer software.
These discussions resulted in the generally accepted principle that computer programs should be protected
by copyright, whereas apparatus using computer software or software-related inventions should be protected
by patent.
Copyright law and patent law provide different types of protection. Copyright protection extends only to
expressions, and not to ideas, procedures, methods of operation or mathematical concepts as such, whereas a
patent is an exclusive right granted for an invention, which is a product or a process that provides a new way
of doing something, or offers a new technical solution to a problem.
The Copyright Act provides copyright protection for original works of authorship fixed in any concrete
medium of expression. The Act gives the copyright owner exclusive rights over the reproduction,
preparation of derivative works, distribution.

INDIAN LAW

In India, computer software does not form the subject matter of patents as it does not fulfill the requirements
for a patentable product. India has adopted most of the international instruments like TRIPS, Berne
Convention, WIPO Copyright treaty etc and has also incorporated law on software protection. The major
statutes that cover software protection in India are the Copyrights Act, 1957 and Patents Act, 1970.

COPYRIGHTS ACT, 1957

The Copyright Act of 1957 is the law governing copyrights in India. The Act was amended in 1999 so as to
make the Act compatible with the provisions of TRIPS.
The Act defines computer and computer programs. “Computer Program” means a set of instructions
expressed in words, codes, schemes or in any other form, including a machine readable medium, capable of
causing a computer to perform a particular task or achieve a particular result. “Literary work” is defined as
that which includes computer programs, tables and compilations including computer databases. Copyright,
in relation to a computer program means the exclusive right to do or authorize to do any of the following
acts :
1. To reproduce the work in any material form including the storing of it in any medium by electronic
means;
2. To issue copies of the work to the public not being copies already in circulation;
3. To perform the work in public, or communicate it to the public;
4. To make any cinematographic film or sound recording in respect of the work;
5. To make any translation of the work;
6. To make any adaptation of the work;
7. To do, in relation to a translation or an adaptation of the work any of the acts specified in relation to the
work in the above;
8. To sell or give on commercial rental or offer for sale or for commercial rental any copy of the computer
program. Commercial renting does not apply to computer programs where the program itself is not the
essential object of the rental.
To do any of the above acts related to the computer program or to use it, a license is required from its
owner. Any person who knowingly makes use of an infringing copy of a computer program is liable to be
punished with imprisonment for a term of at least seven days and can be extended to three years and with
fine of at least Rs. 50,000.
The term of copyright in published literary work published within the lifetime of the author is 60
years from the beginning of the calendar year following the year in which the author dies. In case of
anonymous or pseudonymous works, the duration is 60 years from the calendar year following the year in
which the work is first published. Thus, the minimum term of 25 years stipulated in the Berne Convention is
not applicable in India.

PROTECTION

The basis of protection as literary work is that the work must not be copied from another work, but
must be the original work of the author. Author, with regard to computer software, is the person who causes
the work to be created. Copyright subsists in a computer program provided sufficient effort or skill has been
spent to give it a new and original character.
Other than the condition of “originality,” a computer program also has to conform to the requirement
of first publication as stated in the Act. The work must be first published in India and if it is published
outside India, then the author should be a citizen of India at the time of publication. As regards unpublished
work, the author should be a citizen of India or domiciled in India at the date of making of the work.
The government of India passed the International Copyright Order, 1958 whereby any work first
published in any country which is a member of the Berne Convention or the UCC (Universal Copyright
Convention) will be accorded the same treatment as if it was first published in India. The registration of
copyright is not compulsory in India but registration offers better protection to the author in cases of
infringement of copyright.

ACTS NOT AMOUNTING TO INFRINGEMENT

In compliance with the provisions of the TRIPS, the Act has clarified that the following acts do not
constitute infringement of copyright in software:
a. Making copies or adaptation of a computer program by a lawful possessor of a copy of such computer
program from such copy in order to utilize the program for the purpose for which it was supplied or to make
back-up copies purely as a temporary protection against loss, destruction or damage in order only to utilize
the computer program for the purpose for which it was supplied.
b. Doing any act necessary to obtain information essential for operating inter-operability of an independently
created computer program with other programs by a lawful possessor of a computer program provided that
such information is not otherwise readily available.
c. Observation, study or test of functioning of the computer program in order to determine the ideas and
principles which underline any elements of the program while performing such acts necessary for which the
computer program was supplied.
d. Making copies or adaptation of the computer program from a personally legally obtained copy for non-
commercial personal use.