Copyright
Perspectives on copyright across India and the subcontinent.
Padmaja Chinta · 25 April 2017
Indemnification Clauses in Tech Licensing: The Pitfalls to Avoid
Indemnification clauses in technology licences get too little attention for how much they matter. If you're the licensee, four common limitations can leave you exposed to third-party patent claims — reject them.
Archana Priyadharshini · 21 March 2017
Copyright and Copyleft: Two Ways to Share a Work
Copyright is a natural right that reserves a bundle of rights to the author. Copyleft flips the logic — sharing rights freely on condition that every derivative stays just as free. How the two differ, and why copyleft (born with GNU GPL) fuels innovation.
14 March 2017
Rental Rights Under Indian Copyright Law
Only the copyright owner can commercially rent out software, films and sound recordings — but non-profit libraries and educational institutions are exempt. How 'commercial rental' works under the Copyright Act.
28 February 2017
Copyright in the Digital World: Who Owns Your Multimedia?
Every video, meme, website and app you touch is a layered bundle of copyrights. How Indian law protects multimedia as a compilation of literary, artistic, cinematographic, sound and musical works — each owned separately — the licensing headache that creates, and where DRM fits.
14 February 2017
Copyright Protection for Photographers in India
A photograph is an artistic work protected by copyright the moment it is taken — regardless of quality. Who owns it, how long protection lasts, and why owning the camera is irrelevant.
Prachi Jain · 10 February 2017
Bollywood, Copyright and the 'Inspiration' Defence
For years, copied films hid behind the word 'inspiration' — until 20th Century Fox sued over 'Knockout' (a remake of 'Phone Booth') and won. How Indian copyright's idea–expression divide and the R.G. Anand test decide when inspiration becomes infringement.
30 January 2017
The DU Photocopy Case: Course Packs, Copyright and Education
Publishers sued over photocopied 'course packs' at Delhi University — and lost. The Delhi High Court's Division Bench held reproduction for educational instruction under Section 52(1)(i) isn't infringement, with no page limit, and the publishers ultimately withdrew.
26 October 2016
ISRA Wins Again: Singers' Right to Royalty Upheld
The Indian Singers' Rights Association won another Delhi High Court case — restraining a club from playing its members' songs without a Performers' Rights Clearance Certificate. How the 2012 amendment's inalienable Right to Receive Royalty (R3) works.
13 October 2016
The DU Photocopy Case: The Appeal, and How It Ended
Publishers appealed Justice Endlaw's ruling that course packs for students were not copyright infringement, arguing it would open academic texts to wholesale copying. The Division Bench refused an injunction — and in 2017 the publishers withdrew the suit altogether.
30 September 2016
Royalties for Lyricists and Composers: The Aditya Pandey Ruling and the 2012 Amendment
The Supreme Court's Aditya Pandey ruling — that composers and lyricists get no separate royalty once a sound recording is licensed — was decided on pre-2012 law. The 2012 amendment then gave authors a non-waivable royalty right. Both, explained.
27 September 2016
A Breakthrough for Indian Copyright: The DU Photocopy Judgment
The Delhi High Court's 2016 single-judge ruling dismissed publishers' suit over Delhi University's photocopied course packs, holding educational reproduction under Section 52(1)(i) isn't infringement. Justice Endlaw's reasoning — 'copyright is intended to increase, not impede, the harvest of knowledge.'
23 September 2016
Is Watching a Pirated Film a Crime in India? What the Court Actually Said
The Bombay High Court clarified that merely viewing a blocked, pirated film is not itself an offence — infringing or abetting infringement is. What the ISP warning got wrong, and why 'not illegal' isn't the same as 'fine'.