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Advocate & Intellectual Property Attorney
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Manish M. Bhagnari

B.Com. & LL.B.

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Copyrights

Important Points About Copyrights


  1.   The Copyright Act, 1957 protects original literary, dramatic, musical and artistic works and                  cinematograph films and sound recordings from unauthorized uses, such as, plagiarism and           piracy.

  2.   Copyright protection is above all one of the means of promoting, enriching and disseminating           the national cultural heritage.

  3.   For a work to enjoy copyright protection, however, it must be an original creation. The ideas in           the work do not need to be new but the form, be it literary or artistic, in which they are                             expressed must be an original creation of the author.

  4.   Copyright protection is independent of the quality of the work. In other words the question of               'good work' or 'bad work' does not come into consideration for getting the copyright protection.            And  the purpose for which it is intended to be used is also irrelevent for getting the copyright              protection.

  5.   Copyright comes into existence as soon as a work is created and no formality is required to be          completed for acquiring copyright.

  6.   The entries made in the Register of Copyrights serve as prima-facie evidence in the court of              law.

  7.   The Copyright Office has been set up to provide registration facilities to all types of works.

  8.   Separate applications should be made for registration of each work;.

  9.   Both published and unpublished works can be registered..

10.  A “work” means – a literary, dramatic, musical or artistic work, a cinematograph film, or a                     sound recording. And for such 'works', copyrights protection is available throught India.


11.  Copyright protects only the expressions and not the ideas. Thus, there is no copyright                           protection or the ideas and concepts.

12.  There is no copyright only for titles by themselves or names, short word combinations,                         slogans, short phrases, methods, plots or factual information.

13.  The "literary work" includes – computer programmes, tables and compilations including                    computer data bases. Thus, under the Copyright Act, computer programmes are treated as                literary works.

14.  A "Work of joint authorship" means a work produced by the collaboration of two or more                      authors in which the contribution of one author is not distinct from the contribution of the other            author or authors.

15.  Ordinarily the author i.e., creator is the first owner of copyright in a work.

16.  But a work created by an author employed for that purpose by any employer, then the employer         and not the author, is the owner of the copyright in that work.

17.  The “moral rights” always belong to the author of the work, whoever may be the owner of the               copyright.

18.  The author of a work has the 'moral rights' to claim authorship of the work and to restrain or               claim damages in respect of any distortion, mutilation, modification or other acts in relation to           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 honour or reputation.

19.  The moral rights are independent of the author’s copyright and remains with him even after               assignment of the copyright.

20.  The author can assign or  give by way of license  his copyright to someone else for commercial         purposes.

21.  As a genral rule the copyright is protected for a limited period of 60 years.

22.  This 60-year period is counted from 'the year following the death' of the author of original                     literary, dramatic, musical and artistic works.

23.  But the 60-year period is counted from 'the date of publication' in the case of cinematograph               films, sound recordings, photographs, posthumous publications, anonymous and                               pseudonymous publications, works of government and works of international organisations,

24.  Copyright of nationals of countries who are members of the Berne Convention for the                           Protection of Literary and Artistic Works, Universal Copyright Convention and the TRIPS                       Agreement are protected in India through the International Copyright Order.

25.  Thus, copyrights of works of the countries mentioned in the International Copyright Order are             protected in India, as if such works are Indian works.

26.  A copyright owner can take legal action against any person who infringes the copyright in the            work. The copyright owner is entitled to remedies by way of injunctions, damages and                          accounts.

27.  The District Court concerned has the jurisdiction in civil suits regarding copyright infringement.

28.  The minimum punishment for infringement of copyright is imprisonment for six months with               the minimum fine of Rs. 50,000/-. In the case of a second and subsequent conviction the                   minimum punishment is imprisonment for one year and fine of Rs. one lakh.