Case Note & Summary
The case involved interim applications in two commercial IP suits filed by Indian Performing Right Society Limited (IPRS), a copyright society registered under the Copyright Act, 1957, against two FM radio broadcast companies, Rajasthan Patrika Pvt. Ltd. and Music Broadcast Limited. The plaintiff sought interim injunctions to restrain the defendants from broadcasting songs from its repertoire without paying separate royalties for the underlying literary and musical works embodied in sound recordings, relying on the Copyright (Amendment) Act, 2012. The plaintiff contended that the amendments effective 21.06.2012 had completely changed the legal framework, entitling authors of original literary, dramatic, musical and artistic works to claim royalties each time their works were utilized in sound recordings communicated to the public, and that earlier judgments predating the amendment should not influence the grant of interim relief. The defendants, on the other hand, argued that the amendments were merely clarificatory, reinforcing the well-settled position that once an author of an original literary or musical work assigned the same to a producer of a cinematograph film, the author could no longer claim any further right when the film was communicated to the public. They specifically pointed out that Sections 13 and 14 of the Copyright Act, which define works in which copyright subsists and the meaning of copyright, were not amended in 2012, indicating that no new substantive right was created. The factual background included IPRS's registration in 1996, licence agreements between IPRS and the defendants in 2001 and 2006, a compulsory licence fee set by the Copyright Board in 2010 that expired on 30.09.2020, and subsequent legal proceedings. In 2011, a learned Single Judge of the Bombay High Court decreed a suit holding that authors of underlying works had no right to interfere with the rights of owners of sound recordings to communicate them to the public. In 2016, the Supreme Court in International Confederation of Societies of Authors and Composers (ICSAC) v. Aditya Pandey upheld similar orders. After the 2012 amendment, IPRS filed intervention applications before the Intellectual Property Appellate Board (IPAB) in proceedings under Section 31D of the Copyright Act, and on 31.12.2020 the IPAB passed an order fixing separate rates of royalties for sound recordings and for literary and musical works, acknowledging the change in law. The defendants appealed against that order to the extent it determined separate rates for literary and musical works. Meanwhile, a learned Single Judge of the Delhi High Court dismissed two IPRS suits on 04.01.2021, holding that the 2012 amendment had not brought about any change in law; appeals against that judgment were pending. The Tribunals Reforms Ordinance, 2021 dissolved the IPAB, and the Delhi High Court Intellectual Property Division was established to carry out its functions. The defendants filed applications under Section 31D before the IPD seeking revision of statutory licence rates and obtained an interim status quo order on 27.09.2021, with a clarification that IPRS could avail remedies if the defendants were non-compliant with the IPAB order. IPRS engaged AirCheck to procure data of songs played by the defendants' radio stations, which allegedly revealed a large number of music playouts belonging to IPRS's repertoire for September 2021, and contended this was in contravention of Section 31D(5) of the Copyright Act. The present suits were filed in March and December 2022, and interim applications were taken up for hearing with submissions recorded up to paragraph 15 of the provided judgment text. The court's final analysis and decision on the interim relief were not included in the provided text, so the outcome remains not mentioned.
Headnote
A) Copyright Law - Rights of Authors of Underlying Works - Copyright (Amendment) Act, 2012 - Copyright Act, 1957, Sections 13, 14, 17, 18, 19, 31D, 33 - The plaintiff Indian Performing Right Society Limited contended that amendments brought into effect from 21.06.2012 in the Copyright Act, 1957 completely changed the legal framework concerning the rights of authors of original literary, dramatic, musical and artistic works, entitling them to claim royalties on each occasion their original works are utilized, including when a sound recording is communicated to the public by FM radio broadcasters (Paras 1, 15). The defendants contended that the amendments were merely clarificatory because Sections 13 and 14 of the Copyright Act, pertaining to works in which copyright subsists and meaning of copyright, were not amended in 2012, indicating that no new substantive right was granted to authors of original works (Paras 2, 15). The court had not yet delivered its final decision on the interim applications in the provided text. B) Copyright Law - Statutory Licensing for Broadcasting - Section 31D, Copyright Act, 1957 - IPAB/IPD proceedings fixed separate royalty rates for literary and musical works and for sound recordings; defendants filed revision applications before Delhi High Court Intellectual Property Division seeking status quo; plaintiff alleged contravention of Section 31D(5) by defendants broadcasting songs from its repertoire without separate royalty for underlying literary and musical works (Paras 10-13). The court was yet to decide the interim relief in the provided text.
Issue of Consideration
Whether the Copyright (Amendment) Act, 2012, effective 21.06.2012, brought about a change in law to entitle authors of original literary, dramatic, musical and artistic works to claim royalties on each occasion their works are utilized in sound recordings communicated to the public by FM radio broadcasters, thereby requiring separate licence/royalty for underlying literary and musical works embodied in sound recordings, and whether interim relief should be granted despite prior judgments holding otherwise.
Law Points
- Copyright (Amendment) Act
- 2012 effective 21.06.2012 allegedly creates new substantive rights for authors of original literary
- dramatic
- musical and artistic works to claim royalties on each communication of sound recordings to the public
- amendments to Section 17
- 18
- 19 and 33 of Copyright Act
- 1957
- Sections 13 and 14 not amended indicating no new substantive right
- Section 31D statutory licensing for broadcasting
- prior Supreme Court and High Court judgments held authors lose rights after assignment to film producer
