What are Fair Use and Fair Dealing? Fair Use and Fair Dealing are concepts related to each another, and they both act as exceptions to the general rules of Copyright Law. These two concepts are, however, defined under different legal systems. Fair use is generally… Read More »How Do Copyright Exceptions Work Under Indian Law?
Who Owns Creators’ Works? Spiderman, Ironman, Thor etc. are household names and the comics and movies are still a huge part of our lives. But while the studio names associated with these characters (Marvel, DC or Disney) are famous, the original creators of these works… Read More »What Is the Stance of US Law on Works Made For Hire?
Copyright Protection for Characters Section 13 of the Indian Copyright Act provides that copyright subsists in original literary, dramatic, musical and artistic works, cinematographic films, and sound recordings. It does not expressly provide protection for characters that are created in these works, and subsequently developed… Read More »Can Characters Be Copyrighted in India?
The Doctrine of Joint Authorship According to Indian copyright law, an author is an individual who creates a work and is the exclusive proprietor of the work, at least in the first instance. If more than one person is engaged in the authoring process, the… Read More »What is Joint Authorship in Copyright Law?
What is the Cover Version of a Song? An original song consists of a literary work written by a lyricist, converted into a song by a singer with help of a music composer who composes the music. Eventually the song is completed and released into… Read More »Copyright and Song Covers: Whose Permission Do You Need?
De Minimis in Copyright ‘De minimis’ refers to a trivial legal violation that is insufficient to warrant legal remedy – it follows from the legal maxim ‘de minimis non curat lex’ which translates into ‘the law does not concern itself with trifles’. Where an act… Read More »Is Minor Usage of Media Material Copyright Infringement?
Introduction The WIPO Copyright Treaty (WCT) is an agreement which originated from the Berne Convention. It was developed to protect the works and rights of their authors in the digital environment. The WCT mentions two subject matters to be protected by copyright: a) computer programs… Read More »What is the WIPO Copyright Treaty?
Introduction Copyright primarily concerns itself with the ‘rights of the authors’ which means that the author’s (term used here to represent a wide array of artistic creators) original work is his or her personal property, and others are not permitted to use it without permission.… Read More »What Are Authors’ Moral Rights?
Introduction In India, when it comes to calculating the quantum of damages for IP infringement, there are no set parameters or guidelines so courts place reliance on existing broad principles and precedents. In the case of Microsoft Corporation v Deepak Raval, the Delhi High Court awarded… Read More »How Do You Calculate of Damages Arising Out of Trademark and Copyright Infringement?
Introduction To have a piece of art or a word engraved on one’s body takes in a lot of commitment, and this dedicated engraving pushes one to think whether or not tattoos, permanent or otherwise are eligible for protection under the Indian Copyright framework. In… Read More »Tattoos and Copyright: How Does Having a Picture Inked to Your Body Interact With Authorship Rights?
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