Sound Board

Our thoughts and views on the practice of Intellectual Property in India and around the world.

A recent study conducted by ‘We Are Social’ found that despite these slow speeds, Internet users in India spend almost 5 hours on the net every day, with 40% of that time spent on social media. Going by these statistics, Indian users roughly spend about 2 hours on social media and which platform they use will probably differ based of age, profession and purpose for use. So those of us who fit this description and spend most of those 2 hours on Facebook, would have come across several internet…

There has been a lot of brouhaha over the recent judgment of the Delhi High Court, where the Court has ordered ISPs to block websites that were illegally broadcasting the FIFA World Cup in a suit filed by Multi Screen Media (MSM) Satellite claiming exclusive broadcasting rights. The initial judgment contained 472 websites, however, an order passed on July 1st named 219 websites in furtherance of an application made one of the Defendants.

You’ve probably come across that Shakespearean quote several times in your life. Shakespeare is one of those people that everyone knows of because you just ought to (to seem knowledgeable during small talk at the very least). What you may not know in the context of Copyright is that none of his works were protected under the law of Copyright (probably why my school staged his plays for several years without worrying about rights). The Statute of Anne which was the Act which brought in copyright…

Tripping on tangled mass of wires, feeling my head reverberate with the sound of music, coffee, beer and smoke breaks was a part of my life for a few years. I used to sing for a band and for several music shows before I turned to the dark side and settled in on a career in Law. Whether it was cover versions or own compositions, life was simple, we performed what we felt like and performed it proudly in public (if given the chance) not concerned with protecting what was ours or defining rights.

If you’re in India and have ever been near an elevator, you’ve probably heard Kenny G playing the saxophone. Owners of malls, hospitals, independent retail outlets, housing quarters and practically every lift (elevator) seem to have a particular proclivity toward choosing the instrumental music of Kenneth Bruce Gorelick.

When the cricket fever has caught on, in the Indian subcontinent with the ICC T20 World Cup matches providing some nail biting excitement, the Hon’ble Delhi Court has, at the perfect moment, granted an interim injunction restraining several entities mainly appearing to be pubs, cafes and restaurants from airing the ICC T20 World Cup matches without the authorization of Star India Pvt ltd. Star India Pvt Ltd, most likely miffed by infringement of its copyright by several cafes and restaurants,…

It seems to have become a norm in India these days to rake up some controversy before a film’s release. It is almost always either intellectual property (copyright or trademark) violation or defamation. This time apparently it is both!

I just looked back on our posts and noticed that we have been bringing to you many posts about the changes in the Trademark, Patent and Designs Office but haven’t been giving due attention to the Copyright Office (not that much has happened in a while)

Yoga is one of the oldest physical and spiritual exercises known to mankind. It is collective knowledge and has been believed to be in existence from around 2500 B.C. Come to think of it, there should be no intellectual property battle over it – it is India’s traditional knowledge and no single entity or company should be allowed to monopolise any yoga asana or posture in the form of a patent or copyright, as the case may be. However, practically and legally, it isn’t this straight forward and…