THE COPYRIGHT ACT, 1957

                                      The Copyright Act, 1957

In ancient days creative persons like artists, musicians and writers made, composed or wrote their works for fame and recognition rather than to earn a living, thus, the question of copyright never arose. The importance of copyright was recognized only after the invention of printing press which enabled the reproduction of books in large quantity. In India first legislation of its kind, the Indian Copyright Act was passed in 1914 which was mainly based on the UK Copyright Act, 1911.

During the last four decades modern and advanced means of communications like broadcasting, litho0photography, television, etc. have made inroads in the Indian economy with the result that it became essential to fulfill international obligations in the field of copyright. This necessitated that a comprehensive legislation may be introduced to completely revise the copyright law. To this effect a Copyright Bill, 1957 was introduced in the Parliament.

It introduced several new features which are briefly indicated below:

1.      A Copyright Office is sought to be established under the immediate control of a Registrar of Copyrights who shall act under the superintendence and direction of the Central Government. The principal function of the Copyright Office will be to maintain Register of Copyrights in which may be entered, at the option of the authors, the names and addresses of authors and owners of copyright for the time being, and other relevant particulars. Such a Register will easily make available useful information to interested members of pubic in regard to copyrighted works.

In order to encourage registration of copyrights, provision is made that no proceeding regarding infringement of copyright shall be instituted unless copyright is registered in the Copyright Office. In addition to being in charge of the Copyright Office, the duties of the Registrar of Copyrights will be to entertain and dispose of applications for compulsory licenses and to inquire into complaints of importation of infringing copies. An appeal to the Copyright Board is provided for against the orders of the Registrar of Copyrights.

 

2.      Provision is made for setting up a Copyright Board which will determine the reasonableness of the rates of fees, charges or royalties claimed by performing rights societies, consider applications for general licenses for public performances of works and will assess compensation payable under the Bill in certain circumstances. An appeal can be made to the High Court against the decisions of the Copyright Board.

 

3.      The definition of “copyright” is enlarged to include the exclusive right to communicate works by radio-diffusion.

 

4.      A cinematograph film will have a separate copyright apart from its various components, namely, story, music, etc.

 

5.      An author assigning copyright in his work is allowed the option to re-acquire the copyright after seven years but before ten years of the assignment on the condition that he returns the amount received by him at the time of the assignment with interest thereon.

 

6.      The normal term of the copyright is fixed to be the life of the author and a period of 25 years after his death as against the existing term of the life of the author, and a period of 50 years after his death. Shorter terms are fixed for anonymous or pseudonymous works, cinematograph films, mechanical contrivances, photographs, etc.

 

7.      Under the existing law, the sole right to produce a translation of a work first published in India is extinguished after ten years, unless a translation thereof is produced within that period. The Draft Bill makes the right co-extensive with other rights arising out of copyright.

 

8.      Provision is made for the issue of a general or special license for public performances of any work by means of a radio-receiving set or a mechanical contrivance.

 

9.      A license may be issued to any library to make or cause to be made one copy of any book in which copyright subsists and which is not available for sale.

 

10.  Provision is made for regulating the activities of performing rights societies and also for controlling the fees, charges and royalties to be collected by them.

 

11.  Certain rights akin to copyright are conferred on broadcasting authorities in respect of programmes broadcast by them.

 

12.  International copyright relations which are based on international treaties will be regulated by specific orders to be made by the Central Government.

 

13.  A fair dealing with any work for the purposes of radio summary or judicial proceeding will not hereafter constitute an infringement of copyright.

List of Amending Acts

·         The Copyright (Amendment) Act, 1983 (23 of 1983) (w.e.f. 9-8-1984)

·         The Copyright (Amendment) Act, 1984 (65 of 1984) (w.e.f. 8-10-1984)

·         The Copyright (Amendment) Act, 1992 (13 of 1992) (w.e.f. 28-12-1991)

·         The Copyright (Amendment) Act, 1994 (38 of 1994) (w.e.f. 10-5-1995)

·         The Copyright (Amendment) Act, 1999 (49 of 1999) (w.e.f. 15-1-2000)

It extends to the whole of India

a)      Adaptation means –

·         In relation to a dramatic work, the conversion of the work into a non-dramatic work.

·         In relation to a literary work or an artistic work, the conversions of the work into a dramatic work by way of performance in public or otherwise.

·         In relation to literary or dramatic work, any abridgement of the work or any version of the work in which the story or action is conveyed wholly or mainly by means of pictures in a form suitable for reproduction in a book, or in a newspapers, magazine or similar periodical.

·         In relation to a musical work, any use of such work involving its arrangement or alteration.

 

b)      “Work of architecture” means any building or structure having as artistic character or design, or any model for such building or structure.

 

c)      “Artistic work” means –

·         A painting, a sculpture, a drawing (including a diagram, map, chart or plan), an engraving or a photograph, whether or not any such work possesses artistic quality.

·         A (work of architecture).

·         Any other work of artistic craftsmanship.

 

d)      “Author” means –

·         In relation to a literary or dramatic work, the author of the work

·         In relation to a musical work, the composer

·         In relation to an artistic work other than a photograph, the artist

·         In relation to a photograph, the person taking the photograph

·         In relation to a cinematograph film or sound recording, the producer

·         In relation to any literary, dramatic, musical or artistic work which is computer-generated, the person who causes the work to be created

 

e)      “Broadcast” means communication to the public –

·         By any means of wireless diffusion, whether in any one or more of the forms of signs, sounds or visual images

·         By wire and includes a re-broadcast

 

f)       “Calendar year” means the year commencing on the 1^st day of January.

 

g)      “Cinematograph film” means any work of visual recording on any medium produced through a process from which a moving image may be produced by any means and induced a sound recording accompanying such visual recording and “cinematograph” shall be construed as including any work produced by any process analogous to cinematography including video films.

 

h)      “Communication to the public” means making any work available for being seen or heard or otherwise enjoyed by the public directly or by any means of display or diffusion other than by issuing copies of such work regardless of whether any member of the public actually sees, hears or otherwise enjoys the work so made available.

 

i)        “Infringing copy” means –

·         In relation to a literary, dramatic, musical or artistic work, a reproduction thereof otherwise than in the form of a cinematographic film

·         In relation to a cinematograph film, a copy of the film made on any medium by any means

·         In relation to a sound recording, any other recording embodying the same sound recording, made by any means

·         In relation to a programme or performance in which such a broadcast reproduction right or a performer’s right subsists under the provisions of this Act, the sound recording or a cinematographic film of such programme or performance.

If such reproduction, copy or sound recording is made or imported in contravention of the provisions of this Act.

Copyright Office & Copyright Board

Copyright Office: The Copyright Office shall be under the immediate control of the Registrar of Copyrights and may appoint one or more Deputy Registrars of Copyrights.

Registrar and Deputy Registrars of Copyrights: The Central Government shall appoint a Registrar of Copyrights and may appoint one or more Deputy Registrars of Copyrights.

Copyright Board: The Central Government shall constitute a Board to be called the Copyright Board which shall consist of a Chairman and may appoint one or more than (fourteen) other members.

Works in which copyright subsists

1.      Original literary, dramatic, musical and artistic works

2.      Cinematograph films

3.      Sound recording

Copyright shall not subsist: in any cinematograph film is a substantial part of the films is an infringement of the copyright in any other work.

CASE STUDY – I

Common properties are not the subject of copyright

No doubt the central theme of the articles published by the second plaintiff and that of the drama and movie is the same, though the emphasis in the drama and the movie is more on human bondage, particularly of Indian women. The articles published by Ashwini Sarin also contain an autobiographical account of the part actually played by him in the affair. He has presented the whole affair in his own style. But that at the most would give the plaintiff copyright in respect of these articles. There cannot, however, be a copyright in an event which has actually taken place. There is a distinction between the materials upon which one claiming copyright has worked and the product of the application of his skill, judgment, labor and literary talent to these materials. Ideas, information, natural phenomenon and events on which an author expends his skill, labor capital, judgment and literary talent are common property and are not the subject or copyright; Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Pvt. Ltd. V. Dr. Jogmohan Mundhara, AIR 1985 Bom 229.

CASE STUDY – II

No ownership in case of mere ‘idea’

A person may have a brilliant idea for a story, or for a picture, or for a play, and one which, so far as he is concerned, appears to be original, but, if he communicates that idea to an author or a play writer or an artist, the production which is the result of the communication of the idea to the author or the artist or the playwright is the copyright of the person who has clothed the idea in a form, whether by means of a picture, a play, or a book, and the owner of the idea has no rights in the product: Donoghue V, Allied Newspaper Ltd., (1937) 3 ChD 503.

CASE STUDY – III

Producer can defeat rights of music composer or lyricist

The core of the question, whether the producer of a cinematograph film can defeat the right of the composer of music or lyricist by engaging him; the key to the solution of this question lies in the provisions (b) and (c) to section 17 of the Act reproduced above which put the matter beyond doubt. According to the first of these provisions, viz., proviso (b), when a cinematograph film producer commissions a composer of music or a lyricist for reward or valuable consideration for the purpose of making his cinematograph film, or composing music or lyric therefore i.e.: the sounds for incorporation or absorption in the sound track associated with the film, which is already indicated, are included in a cinematograph film, he becomes the first owner of the copyright therein and no copyright subsists in the composer of the lyric or music so composed unless there is a contract to the contrary between the composer of the lyric or music on the one hand and the producer of the cinematograph film on the other.