Written by: MADHAV SHARMA, GALGOTIAS UNIVERSITY
INTRODUCTION
COPYRIGHTOWNERSHIP/AUTHORSHIPMEANING
In India, copyright is known as the sui generis right, which denotes that it is regarded as a natural right since the original creator of any literary work—including computer-generated works—as well as theatrical, musical, or creative works, cinematography, and sound recordings immediately inherits all rights and powers. It is not necessary to register the aforementioned in order to receive protection under the 1957 copyright act. According to the Apex court in the R.G. Anand case, registration of any literary or artistic work is not necessary in order to profit from the copyright Act of 1957.
An author is a person who writes
.The term "author" can be defined in a variety of ways Broadly speaking, an author is someone who develops or creates anything that is their own, including literary and artistic creations of all kinds. The person taking the picture is, in essence, the author of the image. Composer is the author of the musical piece. When it comes to cinematography, the author is also the film's producer at the hard moments, etc.
"Author" is defined as follows under section 2(d) of the Copyright Act, 1957:
Under regard to a literary or dramatic work, the author of the work. regarding compositions formusic,the composer regarding creative endeavors apart from photography.
The producer is in charge of the cinematography in a film or sound recording; the author is in charge of creating any computer-generated literary, dramatic, musical, or artistic work.
Thus, the term "author" or "first owner" refers to the initial creator of any creative work, whether it be computer-generated or not.
Who is the proprietor?
The Copyright Act distinguishes between ownership and authorship. The essential rule is that the author is the initial owner of the copyright, as we have stated. The Copyright Act of 1957, however, lists a few exceptions to this broad rule. It is therefore essential to comprehend the distinction between copyright ownership and authorship.
COPYRIGHT OWNER'S RIGHTS
In India, the Copyright Act, 1957 offers copyright protection. The copyright holder benefits from these safeguards in the following two ways: The author's moral and financial rights
Additionally, the copyright owner's rights are categorized in detail below:
Right of Assignment: The owner of the copyright to an existing work or a prospective owner of a work in the future may assign the copyright to any person, in whole or in part, normally subject to restriction, and for the whole duration of the copyright or any portion of it. In the event of a future assignment, copyright will, however, only become effective upon the creation of the work. Therefore, until future work is created, copyrights cannot be assigned to it properly.
The court concluded in Srimagal & co. vs. Books (India) Pvt. Ltd. that "it will suffice if the assignment can be culled out in writing from some documents." No specific form of assignment under Section 19 is required.
Right of author to renounce copyright: The author may renounce all or any of the rights to the work by notifying the registrar of copyrights. Such notice has the effect of terminating all of his rights for that work as of the notice date. Nonetheless, the owner of the copyright may only give up those rights that he can independently of others, such as assignees, without impairing such rights.
Reproduction rights: According to the Copyright Act of 1957, the sole author of a work is entitled to reproduce it or provide permission to others to do so. Without the author's express consent, no one else may duplicate his work.
The Star India (P) Ltd. v. Leo Burnett India (P) Ltd. case involved a lengthy discussion by the court over the permissible locations for writing copies in cinematography. When Tide unveiled their logo, "Kyon Ki Bahu Bhi Kabhi Saas Banegi," it caused a stir since it was identical to the name of a television program, "Kyon Ki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi." According to the court, it was illegal.
Ability to transmit work:
A "broadcast" is any type of communication to the general public that is distributed wirelessly, including rebroadcasts. It can also take the form of wired communication and can take any number of formats, including visual pictures, sounds, or signs.
In addition, the author has the right to defend and uphold his moral rights. Under copyright law, the author is able to safeguard his intellectual property.
The copyright holder of any existing work may grant or permit usage of his interest in the copyright by means of a written license that is officially signed by him. Even the owner of a future work that is protected by copyright may permit or grant a license in relation to that future work, but only when that future work is completed.
NEW ADVANCES IN COPYRIGHT LAW
The increase in internet usage has led to a number of goods on the internet with varied degrees of copyright protection, including news, articles, games, graphics, e-books, movies, images, and more. One of the biggest issues facing the world today is work piracy. One of the main causes of the internet's decentralization is that it allows users to share content online in an infinite number of ways. This makes it challenging to determine whether a piece of content is a copy or a duplicate of a protected work, which has led to widespread piracy.
However, in order to address this issue, the internet has undergone adjustments. For example, several websites or businesses have prohibited the download of their content in order to preserve their copyright interests. For instance, copyright infringement occurs when someone downloads YouTube content and uses it for their own gain. The creator of the original work may be able to sue the infringers for damages. Watermarking the work that is accessible online by the owner is another method of addressing this problem.
The Delhi High Court held in the case of UTV Software Communication Ltd. vs. 1337X.To and Ors. that copyright infringement in the digital sphere is identical to infringement in the physical world and that there is no justification for why a crime in the physical world does not translate into a crime in the digital realm, particularly since the Copyright Act does not draw this distinction.
To ensure that the original content of the plaintiffs was protected, the court in the recent case of Disney Enterprises Inc. and Ors. Vs. Kim cartoon. to & Ors. restrained the defendants from hosting, streaming, reproducing, distributing, making available to the public and/or communicating to the public, or facilitating the same on their websites through the internet in any manner whatsoever.
An other piece of law that addresses digital copyright infringements is the Information Technology Act of 2000. Illegal online distribution of intellectual works is punishable under Section 66 of the Act by up to two lakh rupees in fines and three years in jail.
"John Doe" represents another development. With the "John Doe" order, Indian courts have made the decision to lower the number of digital piracy cases in India. Under a John Doe order, the accused's name is unknown at the time the petition is filed, and the courts require very little information about him. The Code of Civil Procedure, 1908, Order 39, Rules 1 and 2, gives Indian courts the authority to grant an injunction to compel "John Doe." The aforementioned laws and regulations are all recent developments intended to address potential risks to copyrighted content and safeguard Indian authors' rights.
Final verdict
One of the essential components for defending the rights of writers or original owners is copyright ownership. The owner of every work he makes has the automatic right to use all the rights granted by the Copyright Act of 1957. Modernization and technological innovation have made it imperative to update copyright rules on a daily basis, as infringements on authors' rights occur in the digital realm. The only way to address this issue is to periodically update copyright laws.
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