Copyright Article

In-depth analytical articles on Indian Copyright law including prosecution,enforcement, statutory interpretation and case developments.

Performer's right and Broadcast reproduction right

Performer’s right and Broadcast reproduction right under The Copyright Act, 1957

Chapter VIII of The Copyright Act, 1957 i.e. rights of broadcasting organisation and of performers in section 37 deals with Broadcast reproduction right and in section 38 with Performer’s right. The Copyright Act, 1957 is principally understood as a statute that protects authors, composers, writers, painters and filmmakers who create original works Yet creative industries […]

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Copyright Societies in India : The Collective Licensing Framework, IPRS, PPL and the Statutory Architecture of Sections 33 to 36A

Copyright Societies in India : Statutory Architecture of Sections 33 to 36A

The administration of copyright in creative industries has never been a matter that individual rights holders can manage alone. A composer whose work is performed across thousands of radio stations, hotel lobbies, restaurants and streaming platforms simultaneously cannot possibly negotiate individual licences with each user, monitor unauthorised performances or collect royalties from each source. It

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Copyright in Computer Programs under Indian Law

The protection of computer programs under intellectual property law is one of the most consequential and contested questions in the history of modern legal systems. Software drives virtually every sector of the contemporary economy – from financial systems and medical devices to communications infrastructure and consumer entertainment. The legal framework that governs who owns software,

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Copyright in Music – Composers, Lyricists and Performers

Music is among the oldest and most universal forms of human expression and it is also among the most legally complex categories of creative work that copyright law is called upon to protect. A single commercially released song involves, in the ordinary case, at least three distinct creative contributions – the musical composition created by

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Copyright in Cinematograph Films – Ownership, Rights and Exploitation

Few creative works demand as much capital, coordinate as many individual contributions, or generate as much commercial activity as a cinematograph film. A feature film involves the labour of writers, directors, composers, lyricists, performers, cinematographers, editors, sound designers, visual effects artists and hundreds of others whose individual creative contributions are assembled, over months or years,

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Moral Rights and Author’s Special Rights under Section 57 of the Copyright Act, 1957

Copyright law operates on two distinct but interconnected axes. The first is economic – the bundle of exclusive rights that allows a creator to control the reproduction, distribution, performance and communication of their work and to extract financial value from it. The second is personal – the connection between a creator and their work that

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Fair Dealing under Section 52 of the Copyright Act, 1957 – A Comprehensive Analysis

Copyright law is, at its core, a bargain. Society grants creators a bundle of exclusive rights over their works for a limited period, in exchange for the enrichment that creative expression brings to public life. But the bargain was never intended to be unconditional. An absolute monopoly over the use of a work would impede

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Digital Copyright in the Internet Age: Online Infringement, Intermediary Liability and Safe Harbours

The internet has fundamentally altered the economics and architecture of creative expression. Content that once required physical manufacture, distribution and retail can now be reproduced, transmitted and accessed globally within seconds, at virtually no cost. This transformation has been a gift to creators and audiences alike – but it has also made large scale copyright

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