Ntellectual Property Rights

ntellectual property rights are the rights that are provided to an individual for
their creations in artistic, musical, filmography, scientific, and such other fields.
Intellectual property is a product of the human intellect or creative minds. The
scope of intellectual property is expanding very fast with the passage of time.
The term intellectual property has been internationally recognised through
different types of law like patents, industrial
designs, copyright, trademarks, geographical indications, and many more.
As in copyright, the concept is based on originality, reproduction of the work,

etc. Copyright is a form of intellectual right the importance of which has
increased massively in recent times due to the rapid technological
development in the field of music, printing, communication, etc. Copyright is a
type of right where the owner of a certain work enjoys exclusive rights over
the work which the person had created.
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 limited
period to exploit the work for monetary gain. Through this article, we will be
understanding the concept of copyright societies.
Copyright has an important place in Intellectual Property Rights as it is a

fundamental area of intellectual property rights that is important not only with
respect to works authored by the individual but also because it involves works
of different types. Copyright is the exclusive right to do certain acts in relation
to literary works, dramatic, musical, and artistic works, cinematograph film,
sound recording, and computer databases.
Copyright law is designed to prevent the copying of existing physical material

in literature and art. The objective is to protect the writer or artist from the
unlawful reproduction of his material. The law does not permit any individual
to make a profit and to appropriate to him from the work which has been
produced by labour, skill, and capital of another. In order to prevent violation
of the rights of creative authors, there are Copyright Societies that takes care
of the rights of authors and all other matters related to copyrighted work.
Summary of copyright
Copyright has its foundation purpose of preventing any individual from using
the works of another individual which has been created by labour, skill or
capital by such individual without his consent for his own benefit and to
protect the rights of the owner of such work. The copyright law prevents
exploitation of the copyrighted work by any other person. In ancient times, the
importance of copyright was not so prevalent, as copying or stealing other’s
work was difficult and expensive.
However, with the invention of the printing press, the world witnessed the
reproduction of one’s work without permission and hence, the importance and
requirement of copyright protection laws was recognised.
Copyright is a creation of statute. Copyright cannot be entitled to every work

under the sun. It is only entitled to such works which are provided under the
Copyright Act. Its main objective is to protect the creator of the original work
from unauthorised reproduction leading to exploitation of his work. The right
also extends to prevent others from exercising without authority any other
form of right attached to copyright. The rights can be either assigned or
licensed to the work either wholly or separately.
Copyright can be only entitled to such original work. The term ‘original’
denotes any work which has been created with its labour and skill and not
copied from any other work. Work, in order to be entitled to copyright
protection, need not have to pass any test of intelligence, good or bad, etc.
However, copyright is not entitled to any form of idea.
For example, if any person in their mind themselves had thought of an idea,
which he had conveyed to any other person, and that person has incorporated
that idea in the material form, then the person who had created the work in
the material form will be allowed to have protection and not the person with
an idea. Copyright protection is also not available to any live events, or on any
such work which is illegal, defamatory, seditious, etc.
In India, copyright laws are stated under The Copyright Act of 1957. Section
13 of the Act mentions such works in which copyright subsists.
Introduction to copyright societies

Copyright Society is referred to as a legal body that protects or safeguards the
interest of owners of the work in which copyright subsists. The Copyright
Society gives assurance to the creative authors for the commercial
management of their works.
Copyright societies are collectively formed by a group of authors and other

owners of such copyrighted works in order to manage and protect the authors
or owners against copyright infringement because it is difficult for authors as
well as owners of the copyright to keep track of the use of their copyrighted
work.
A member of the society is entitled to organizational facilities such as the

Copyright Society keeps a better vigil of the use or monetization of a
member’s copyrighted work throughout the country and collects royalties
from those who use the registered work.
India being a member of international conventions, the copyright societies in

India can collect royalties for the use of Indian works in other member
countries through reciprocal agreements made with similar societies in such
countries. Hence, it is beneficial for copyright owners to become a member of
such a copyright society to ensure proper protection of their copyrighted work
and to obtain the maximum benefit for their creations.
The authors of creative works may assign or licence a publisher to publish his
work for royalty. This also leads to infringement of the work anywhere in India
or abroad therefore it is extremely difficult for the owner of the work to
prevent from such infringement.
To overcome such difficulty owners of Copyright works have formed Societies

to licence their works for performance or communication to the public or issue
copies of the work to the public. ‘Copyright Society’ means a society registered
under Section33 (3) of the Copyright Act, 1956 which provides that the
copyright society duly registered under the act can only conduct the business
of issuing/granting licenses to the copyrighted work i.e., literary, dramatic,
musical, or artistic works incorporated in cinematograph films or sound
recordings.
This collective licensing is necessary for managing performance rights. And

they should file an application with the Registrar of Copyrights on Form VIII.
Functions of copyright societies

The copyright Societies discharge the following functions:
1. It grants license of the Copyright in the work for reproduction,

performance, or communication to the public.
2. It locates the infringement of the Copyright and initiates legal
proceedings.
To regulate these activities of such copyright societies Sections 33 to 36A have
been enacted under the Copyright Act 1956.
Evolution of copyright societies

Before the commencement of the Copyright (Amendment) Act, 1944, Section
33 to Section 36 used to deal with the performing rights societies. This society
used to carry on the business of issuing or granting of licences for the
performance of any work in which copyright subsisted in India.
However, power of such society was limited to the field of literary, dramatic,
musical work. In 1994, after the commencement of the Copyright
(Amendment) Act, 1994 performing rights societies was replaced by copyright
societies in the said Act.
The reason behind the development of copyright

societies
It has been usually observed that the authors of creative works are not
business-minded, or interested in financial resources and are often prone to
the exploitation of their work. For example, if an author has created an original
piece of literary work, then the author might get a monetary benefit by
reproducing copies of his work and selling them to the public at large.
However, this is only possible if the work is licensed to a publisher. It is also

extremely difficult for the owner of the work to prevent infringement of the
work.
At times, it has been also observed that they are unable to keep track of all the
uses others make of their work. Therefore, to overcome such difficulties,
owners of copyright works decided to form copyright societies to licence their
works for performance or communication to the public. The societies are
authorised to do such work based on payment.
Copyright societies in India

In India, now a copyright society is governed under the Copyright Act, of 1957.
A copyright society is established by authors and copyright owners for the
protection of their work from exploitation. The minimum membership for the
registration of a copyright society is seven. There are different kinds of
societies assigned to different classes of work.
For example, a copyright society is especially dedicated to literary work. The

registration granted to the copyright society is almost for 5 years. It can be
renewed from time to time at the end of every five years through a request
application. However, the acceptance of such a request will only be declared
by the central government after analysing certain reports. There had also been
an amendment to the Copyright Act in 2012.
For those copyright societies who had already registered themselves before
this act came into existence, they will themselves get registered under this act
within one year from the date of commencement of the Copyright
(Amendment) Act, 2012.
Section 33 (3) of the Copyright Act, 1956 provides that the copyright society
duly registered under the act can only conduct the business of
issuing/granting licenses to the copyrighted work i.e., literary, dramatic,
musical, or artistic works incorporated in cinematograph films or sound
recordings. This collective licensing is necessary for managing performance
rights. And they should file an application with the Registrar of Copyrights. The
application should consist of:
 A true copy of the application that establishes or incorporates the

Applicant.
 All members of the Governing Body of the Application have given their
consent to serve as members of the Governing Body of the Application.
 A declaration setting down the Applicant’s aims, the entities through
which it will operate, and accounting and auditing arrangements; and
 An undertaking that the instrument is constituted or incorporated
requires it to comply with the provisions of the Act and these Rules.
The term period granted for registered copyright is for five years and can be
renewed before the end of the term of five years by a request through the
prescribed form and the central government will renew the registration after
on the basis of the report from the Registrar of the Copyrights about the
functions and duties performed by the copyright society as stated
under section 36 of the Copyright Act, 1957.
The copyright society’s registration renewal is subject to the copyright

society’s continued collective control being shared with the authors of works
in their capacity as owners of copyright or the right to receive a royalty. Every
copyright society that was already registered prior to the enactment of
the Copyright (Amendment) Act, 2012, must be registered within one year of
the enactment of the Copyright (Amendment) Act, 2012.
The Copyright societies are also authorized to watch out for infringement of
the copyrighted work and take appropriate legal action against the infringers.
Currently active copyright societies in India
A copyright society is created to track and monitor the copyrighted works of

its members and enforce the author’s rights in case of any violations.
It is difficult to keep a check on every individual or entity using a registered

work. The process is tedious and time-consuming. A copyright society ensures
security, enforcement of rights, and the successful and timely receipt of
royalties to the authors of creative works. A copyright society provides
optimum economic benefits to the original creators in the form of royalties or
monetary benefits.
Copyright societies are registered in India under section 33, and there are
three currently active copyright societies in India which are as follows;

Ntellectual Property Rights

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ntellectual property rights are the rights that are provided to an individual for

As in copyright, the concept is based on originality, reproduction of the work,

The object of copyright law is to encourage authors, composers, and artists to

Copyright has an important place in Intellectual Property Rights as it is a

Copyright law is designed to prevent the copying of existing physical material

Copyright is a creation of statute. Copyright cannot be entitled to every work

Introduction to copyright societies

Copyright societies are collectively formed by a group of authors and other

A member of the society is entitled to organizational facilities such as the

India being a member of international conventions, the copyright societies in

To overcome such difficulty owners of Copyright works have formed Societies

This collective licensing is necessary for managing performance rights. And

Functions of copyright societies

1. It grants license of the Copyright in the work for reproduction,

Evolution of copyright societies

The reason behind the development of copyright

However, this is only possible if the work is licensed to a publisher. It is also

Copyright societies in India

For example, a copyright society is especially dedicated to literary work. The

 A true copy of the application that establishes or incorporates the

The copyright society’s registration renewal is subject to the copyright

Currently active copyright societies in India

A copyright society is created to track and monitor the copyrighted works of

It is difficult to keep a check on every individual or entity using a registered

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