The Copyright Act, 1957 notes — Unit 3

Copyright is a bundle of exclusive rights granted to the creator of an original work. Unlike patents (which protect useful inventions), copyright protects aesthetic, literary, or artistic expressions.

⇒No Registration Required

Following the Berne Convention, copyright in India comes into existence the very moment a work is created and fixed in a tangible medium. Registration is optional (though helpful as evidence in court).

This is the most fundamental principle of Copyright Law globally.

⇒The Principle

Copyright protects the *expression* of an idea, NOT the *idea* itself.

⇒Illustration (R.G. Anand v. Delux Films)

The idea of "a poor boy falling in love with a rich girl whose father opposes the marriage" is a generic idea. You cannot copyright it. A hundred directors can make a movie on this idea. However, the specific expression—the exact dialogue, the specific characters (Raj and Simran), the unique screenplay—is protected by copyright.

(In the R.G. Anand case, the Supreme Court ruled that a play and a movie had a similar theme (provincialism), but the treatment and expression were different, so there was no infringement).

Copyright subsists only in specific classes of works enumerated in Section 13:

• Original Literary Works: Books, poems, articles. (Crucially, under the IT Act amendment, this includes Computer Programs and Source Code).
• Original Dramatic Works: Plays, screenplays, choreographic shows.
• Original Musical Works: The musical notations/composition (excluding the lyrics, which are literary works).
• Original Artistic Works: Paintings, sculptures, drawings, photographs, architectural plans.
• Cinematograph Films: The actual movie (a combination of visual and sound).
• Sound Recordings: The actual audio recording (e.g., a CD or MP3).

The Act demands that literary, dramatic, musical, and artistic works must be "original". But what does original mean? Two doctrines evolved:

⇒1. Sweat of the Brow (Old UK approach)

If you put hard work (sweat), time, and money into creating a database (like a telephone directory), it is "original" and protected, even if it lacks creativity.

⇒2. Modicum of Creativity (US approach)

In Feist Publications, the US Supreme Court rejected 'sweat of the brow'. They ruled an alphabetical telephone directory cannot be copyrighted. Originality requires at least a minimal degree (modicum) of creativity in selection or arrangement.

In Eastern Book Company v. D.B. Modak (2008), the Supreme Court of India settled the standard of originality for India.

⇒The Facts

EBC publishes SCC (Supreme Court Cases), where they add headnotes, paragraph numbering, and formatting to raw Supreme Court judgments. Another publisher copied SCC's formatted judgments. EBC sued for copyright infringement.

⇒The Ruling: 'Skill and Judgment'

The SC rejected the 'sweat of the brow' doctrine, but didn't adopt the strict US creativity standard. India adopted a middle path (the Canadian approach): To be original, a derivative work must involve some "skill, labor, and judgment."

The Court held the raw judgments are public property, but EBC's specific headnotes and paragraphing required legal skill and judgment, and thus were protected by copyright.

Copyright grants two distinct bundles of rights:

⇒1. Economic Rights (Sec 14)

The right to exploit the work for money. This includes the exclusive right to:

• Reproduce the work (make copies).
• Issue copies to the public (publish/sell).
• Perform the work in public.
• Make a cinematograph film or sound recording in respect of the work.
• Make any translation or adaptation of the work.

(These rights can be sold or assigned to publishers or producers).

This is based on the French concept of droit moral. It protects the author's personal connection to the work, even after they have sold the economic rights.

⇒Two Key Moral Rights:

• Right of Paternity: The right of the author to claim authorship of the work (to have their name on it).
• Right of Integrity: The right to restrain or claim damages for any distortion, mutilation, or modification of the work that would be prejudicial to the author's honor or reputation.

Unlike a patent (20 years), copyright lasts much longer.

⇒General Rule (Literary, Musical, Artistic)

The term is the Lifetime of the author + 60 years from the beginning of the calendar year next following the year in which the author dies. (This allows the author's children and grandchildren to benefit from the royalties).

⇒Films and Sound Recordings

Because movies are corporate productions, the term is simply 60 years from the year of publication.

When does infringement occur?

⇒Direct Infringement

When any person, without a license, does anything that is the exclusive right of the owner (e.g., printing copies of Harry Potter to sell).

⇒Secondary Infringement

When a person:

• Makes for sale or hire, or sells/lets for hire, infringing copies.
• Distributes infringing copies for trade.
• Imports infringing copies into India.
• Permits any place to be used for the communication of the work to the public for profit (e.g., a restaurant playing pirated music).

Copyright is not absolute. Society needs access to information for education and criticism. Section 52 provides a list of acts that DO NOT constitute infringement. (Known as 'Fair Use' in the US, 'Fair Dealing' in India).

⇒Permitted Acts under Fair Dealing:

• Private or personal use, including research.
• Criticism or review of that work (e.g., a YouTuber using movie clips for a movie review).
• Reporting of current events and current affairs.
• Reproduction by a teacher or a pupil in the course of instruction.

A landmark judgment testing the limits of educational fair dealing in India.

⇒The Facts

Major international publishers (Oxford, Cambridge) sued a photocopy shop on the Delhi University campus. The shop was taking chapters from various expensive copyrighted books and binding them into 'course packs' for students to buy cheaply. The publishers claimed massive copyright infringement.

⇒The Delhi High Court Ruling

The Court dismissed the publishers' suit. It gave a very wide interpretation to Section 52(1)(i) [reproduction by a teacher/pupil in the course of instruction]. The Court ruled that copyright is not a divine right of the author, but a privilege meant to stimulate societal progress. In a developing country like India, providing affordable access to education through course packs falls under fair dealing.

⇒Premium Advice for Top Marks

• Idea vs Expression: Always start any general copyright answer with this dichotomy. Use the R.G. Anand movie plot example to illustrate that you cannot monopolize a general idea, only your specific execution of it.
• Moral Rights (Sec 57): A frequent short note. Emphasize that these rights remain with the author even after they sell the copyright to a publisher. It protects their honor and reputation (Right of Paternity and Integrity).
• Fair Dealing (Sec 52): If the problem question involves a student copying a book, or a journalist quoting an article, apply Fair Dealing. Mentioning the DU Photocopy Case will show the examiner you are aware of modern, high-stakes Indian jurisprudence on educational access.