Ashish Copyright
Ashish Copyright
Ashish Copyright
Table of Contents
Particulars
1. Introduction
2. Meaning of Copyright
3. Definition of Copyright
4. Characteristics of Copyright
5. Object of Copyright
13.Conclusion
14.Bibliography
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INTRODUCTION
The scope of intellectual property is expanding very fast and attempts are being made
by persons who create new creative ideas to seek protection under the umbrella of
importance of which has increased enormously in recent times due to the rapid
In India the first Copyright Act was passed in 1914. It was a replica of the English
Copyright Act of 1911. The Act, presently in force was legislated in the year 1957
1999. Consequent upon India signing the GATT and entering the global market
economy, a number of changes have been made in the Copyright Act of 1957 by the
Amending Act of 1999, to give effect to the obligations arising from the signing of the
GATT and to make Indian Law more in line with the present law in many developed
countries.
MEANING OF COPYRIGHT
The word copyright is derived from the expression copier of words first used
Copy right according to Blacks Law Dictionary is the right in literary property
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invested for a specific period with the sole and exclusive privilege of multiplying
given by law for a certain term of years to an author, composer etc., (or his assignee)
DEFINITION OF COPYRIGHT
relation to
2) Artistic works;
4) Sound recordings.
The various acts for which copyright extends is listed in section 14 of the Act.
Copyright does not extend to any right beyond the scope of section 14. The exclusive
right for doing the respective acts extends not only to the whole of the work but to any
Characteristics of Copyright3
2
Section 14 of the Copyright Act,1957
3
Intellectual Property Law, B.L Wadhera, Chapter 30, Pg 282
2
a) Creation of a statute
Copyright is creation of a specific statute under the present law. There is no such
A copyright is a form of intellectual property since the product over which the right is
c) Monopoly right :
Copyright is a monopoly right restraining the others from exercising that right which
has been conferred on the owner of copyright under the provisions of the Act.
d) Negative right :
e) Multiple rights :
Copyright is not a single right. It consists of a bundle of different rights in the same
work. For instance, in case of a literary work copyright comprises the right of
reproduction in hard back and paper back editions, the right of dramatic and
f) 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
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performance, or the broadcasting rights. Such related rights are termed neighbouring
rights.
OBJECT OF COPYRIGHT4
The object of copyright law is to encourage, authors, composers, artists and
designers 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 public. It
is thus the exclusive right for a limited period to exploit the work for monetary gain.
Thus, protecting, recognizing and encouraging the labour, skill and capital of
the labour, skill and capital of another. This is the very foundation of copyright law.
The object of the copyright law is to protect the author of the copyright work from an
whom the owner of copyright assigns or licenses the particular rights. If the
entrepreneur is to recover the capital invested and earn profits he has to be protected
fraction of the original cost of production and undersell the producer. In ancient times
4
Ibid, Pg 283
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copying was a laborious and expensive process. The importance of copyright
protection was recognized only after the invention of the printing. Press in the 15 th
similar right in any work except those provided under the copyright act. It is a
negative right where the author of the original work is protected from the
prevent others, from exercising without authority any other form of right attached to
copyright.
Example: In the case of literary work the scope of copyright extends to the making of
work. There is no copyright in ideas. Copyright subsists only in the material form in
which the ideas are expressed. Thus it is not an infringement of copyright to adopt
the ideas of another. Also there is nothing in the notion of copyright to prevent
another person from providing an identical result (and himself enjoying a copyright in
There is no copyright in ideas. Copyright subsists only in the material form to which
the ideas are translated. In the field of literary work the words chosen by the author to
express his ideas are peculiar to himself and no two descriptions of the same idea or
fact can be in the same words, just as no two answers written by two different
individuals to the same question can be the same. The order and arrangement of each
5
Supra n. Chapter 30, Pg 254.
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idea, which is translated that is, protected. The above ratio was said down in Jaffroys
v. Boorey.6
In order to secure copyright protection what is required is that the author must have
bestowed upon the work sufficient judgement, skill and labour or capital. It is
has or has not any literary merit as laid down in Walter v. Lane.7
The owner of a copyright has no monopoly in the subject matter. Others are at liberty
to produce the same result provided they do so independently and their work is
of sporting events and news events. This is subject to the special rights conferred on
performers. Copyright protection in however not granted where the work is grossly
Copyright is not a single right but a bundle of rights which can be exploited
independently. Further the nature of the rights conferred on the owner of the
copyright depends upon the nature of the work. But one feature common to all kinds
of work is the right to reproduction in a material form and the right to publication.
The owner of a copyright may exploit the work himself or license others to exploit
6
(1854) 4 HLC 815
7
(1990) AC 539
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(1980) RPC 103
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Supra n. 1, Chapter 30, Pg 256
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any one or more of the rights for a consideration in the form of royalty or a lump sum
payment.
In the case of literary, dramatic, musical or artistic work (other than a photograph)
when published during the lifetime of the another, copyright subsists during the
lifetime of the author plus sixty years. In case of joint authorship the sixty years
period will start after the death of the author who dies last. In the case of anonymous
and sound recording the term is sixty years from the year of publication. Where the
Organization the term of copyright is sixty years from the year of publication.
c) Sound recording.
literary work, because the adaptation itself can be a literary work Adaptation in
relation to literary work means the conversion of the work into a dramatic work. A
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a translation of a literary work is itself a literary work and is entitled to copyright
protection if it is original. The head notes of law reports containing in clear and
concise language, the principles of law deduced from the court decision are original
commercial letters and government letters as they are original literary works. The
amount of labour, skill and judgment. Copyright subsists in dictionaries because they
exempted from copyright protection. Historical facts are not copyrightable per se. A
delivered. A lecture delivered extempore, which has not been reduced to writing, can
literary articles are not protected under copyright law. They can be protected under
section 2(h) a dramatic work includes any piece of recitation, choreographic work or
entertainment in dumb show, the scenic arrangement or acting form of which is fixed
Adaptation in relation to dramatic work means, 1) the conversion of the work into a
non-dramatic work, 2) the abridgement of the work in which the story is conveyed by
magazine or periodical.
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Choreography is the art of arranging or designing of ballet or stage dance in symbolic
work means a work consisting of music and includes any graphical notation of such
work, but does not include any word or any action, intended to be sung or spoken or
performed with the music. An original adaptation of a musical work is usually called
arrangements. E.g., an orchestral work arranged for piano. The remix songs are
There is no copyright in a song as such because a song has its words written by one
man and its music by another. These two copyrights are entirely different and cannot
be merged.
quality.
As in the case of other works, to qualify for copyright protection an artistic work must
be original, i.e. it must originate from the author. In respect of painting, sculpture,
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drawing, engraving or photograph the work need not possess any artistic quality. A
work of architecture must however have artistic quality. The artistic quality of the
the basis of a plan which enjoys a separate copyright apart from the copyright in the
building. This is in contrast with engineering drawings where the machines built on
the basis of the drawings do not have a separate copyright. Copyright also subsists in
hand, machine or otherwise. It has been held that prototype furniture does not qualify
for copyright; some higher level of, artistic interest or attainment is necessary.
2(f), cinematograph firm means any work of visual recording on any medium
produced through a process from which a moving image may be produced by any
means and includes a sound recording accompanying such visual recording and
photographs taken successfully on a long film. For the purpose of copyright, the
a film are not protected by copyright. Their rights are protected as performers
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Copyright subsists in a sound recording. According to section 2 (xx) a sound
recording means a recording of sounds from which such sounds may be produced
regardless of the medium on which such recording is made or the method by which
the sounds are reproduced. The author of the sound recording is the producer. Musical
works and sound recordings embodying the music are considered separate subject-
matter for copyright. The copyright in the recording of the music is separate from the
Copyright in the music vests in the composer and the copyright in the music recorded
The concept of author and ownership are vital when the question of propriety over
the copyright arises. The originator of an idea is not the owner of the copyright.
According to section 17 the author of the work is the first owner of the copyright in
the work.
An author may create a work on his own behalf or at the instance of another person
first case the author is the owner of the copyright in the work. Authors who write
books or compose music come under this category. In the second category, the person
at whose instance the work is made is the owner of the copyright work. In the case of
the third category, the ownership depends upon the nature of employment. The author
of a work depends upon the nature of the work. In the case of literary or dramatic
work the author of the work is the person who creates the work. The author of a
musical work is the composer. In respect of an artistic work the author is the artist.
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The author of a photograph is the person who takes the photograph. In the case of a
cinematograph film the author is the producer of the film at the time of completion.
The author of a sound recording is the producer. In the case of any literary, dramatic,
musical or artistic work which is computer generated, the person who creates the
In the case of literary, dramatic and artistic works where the work is made by
in the absence of any agreement to the contrary, will be the first owner of the
copyright. The copyright in a work done by an employee on his own time and not in
for subsistence of the copyright. If the work is first published outside India the author
must be a citizen of India at the time of publication or if dead at the time of death. In
the case of unpublished work the author must be a citizen of India or domiciled in
India at the time of making the work. Copyright in an architectural work will subsist
only if the work is located in India irrespective of the nationality of the author.
material object in which the copyright work is embodied. Thus a person who buys a
painting may be the owner of the canvas in which the painting is drawn but the
copyright in the work may vest in the artist who has drawn the painting. Similarly
when a person buys a book he is the owner of the book but not the owner of the
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ASSIGNMENT AND LICENSE OF COPYRIGHT
It is seldom that the author of a copyright work himself exploits the work for
monetary benefit. Ordinarily he either assigns the whole or part of his rights to others
license some or all of his rights to others usually on the basis of a royalty payment.
may be for the whole term of the copyright or for any part thereof. It may be for a
Sections 18, 19 and 19A of the Copyright Act deal with the assignment of copyright.
assignor or by his duly authorized agent. Registration is not necessary for its
validity.
2. The deed of assignment shall identify the work and specify the rights assigned
and the duration and territorial extent of such assignment. It should also
specify the royalty payable to the author or his legal heirs, if any.
3. If the assignee does not exercise the rights assigned to him within one year
from the date of assignment, the assignment in respect of such rights shall be
deemed to have lapsed after the expiry of the said period unless otherwise
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4. When the period of assignment is not stated, the period shall be deemed to be
five years from the date of assignment. If the territorial extent of the rights is
An assignee, to whom certain rights have been assigned by the assignor can
restrain the author from exercising those rights which have already been assigned to
According to section 21, the author of a work may relinquish all or any of the
rights comprised in the copyright in the work by giving notice to the Registrar of
Copyright.
grant a license to do any of the acts in respect of which he has an exclusive right to
do. Licensing usually involves only some of the rights and not the whole. Also
unlike an assignment where the assignee becomes the owner of the right assigned a
licensee only gets the right to exercise particular rights subject to the condition of the
signed by the owner of the copyright or his duly authorized agent. The license deed
shall identify the work and specify the rights licensed and the duration and territorial
extent of such license. It must also specify the quantum of royalty payable and the
terms regarding revision, extension and termination of the license. The provision of
section 19 shall, with any necessary adaptation and modifications, apply in relation to
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a license under section 30 as they apply in relation to assignment of copyright in a
work.
quotations from a copyright work in another work or printing the photograph for a
particular country.
exclusion of all other persons including the owner of the copyright any right
owner of the copyright retains, the right to grant licenses to more than one person or
license. In the case of a sole license the licensee can exclude all others except the
Licenses are generally granted by the owner of the copyright on payment of some
royalty. When they are granted in the above manner they are called as voluntary
Section 31 of the Copyright Act deals with compulsory license of an Indian work.
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certain circumstances. The circumstances necessary for grant of such compulsory
b) The author must have refused to republish or allow republication of the work
d) The author must have refused to allow communication to the public of such
A COMPARISON
The subject matter of copyright is more or less similar in India, USA and UK.
When it comes to the Idea Expression dichotomy, UK copyright law follows the
Berne convention where protection goes only to the particular expression of ideas.
dichotomy has been enacted in Section 102 of the statute itself. It states that there is
no copyright for an original work that extends to an idea regardless of the form in
the work originates from the author and is not a copied work, it gets protected under
the UK and the Indian laws. The US laws are more stringent on the originality aspect
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and expects a spark of creativity to be present apart from originality aspect.
Originality and creativity is a constitutional requirement and has been given under
section 102. It explicitly states that originality / creativity and fixation in tangible
Recently the legal battle between Warner Bros and Mirchi Movies, the makers
attention of the world media. The Delhi High Court dismissed the suit filed by
Warner Bros which contended that the films title sought to confuse customers and
benefit unfairly from the Harry Potter brand, the rights to which the United States
based entertainment behemoth owns for movies and merchandise. The paradox is that
hugely successful series of Barry Trotter books and other books like Hairy Potter and
the Marijuana Stone and Hairy Potty and the underwear of Justice have escaped
litigation on similar grounds. The answer to this paradox lies in western intellectual
property law where the right to free speech is a defence against copyright and
Ironically the problem with the Puttar film is that it bears no resemblance at all to the
Potter Saga, and therefore audience could confuse it with a Harry Patter film. The
Delhi High Court however rightly concluded that the audience in India and else where
10
NLSIU, Pg 80-82.
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.
CONCLUSION
computer industry. This has found recognition in the 1994 Amendment Act.
Computer software piracy and video piracy is a world wide phenomenon. To act as a
certain special rights have been introduced for the first time for the benefit of
performers like musicians, actors, acrobats, jugglers, snake charmers and so on.
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ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY
1. Narayanan.P,
Intellectual Property Law,
Eastern Law House,
Third Edition,2007.
2. Priyaranjan Trivedi,
Encyclopaedia of IPR,
Volume III.
4. Wadhera B.L,
Law Relating toIntellectual Property,
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Universal Law Publishing Company,
Fourth Edition 2007.
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