case laws on assignment of copyright

Find a Lawyer
Ask a Lawyer
Research the Law
Law Schools
Laws & Regs
Newsletters
Justia Connect
Pro Membership
Basic Membership
Justia Lawyer Directory
Platinum Placements
Gold Placements
Justia Elevate
Justia Amplify
PPC Management
Google Business Profile
Social Media
Justia Onward Blog

Assignment of Copyrights & Legal Implications

Copyright gives authors a bundle of personal property or economic rights in an original work of authorship. These rights include the rights to reproduce, create derivative works, distribute work to the public, publicly perform a work, publicly display visual works, and digitally transmit sound records. They belong exclusively to a copyright holder.

Usually, the copyright holder is the person who created the work. However, any of these economic rights, or any part of these economic rights, can be transferred. Under the Visual Artists Rights Act (VARA), an artist’s moral rights in a work of fine art can be waived but not assigned.

An original owner who assigns their copyright to someone else will not retain any right to control how the work is used.

The transfer of economic rights may be on an exclusive basis, which requires a written agreement, or a non-exclusive basis, which does not require a written agreement. Most commonly, this transfer is accomplished by assignment or license. Unlike a license in which the copyright owner maintains their ownership, an assignment is similar to a sale. The original copyright owner sells the rights to a third party and cannot control how the rights are used, just as they would not be able to control how personal property that they sold was used once it was transferred.

Generally, a license is preferable if a copyright holder expects to continue exercising interests and control over the work. For example, if you assign your copyright in a song to a music producer, the decision about whether to allow a film studio to use your song in a film will belong to the producer, not to you. If you license your copyright in a song in a limited capacity to a music producer, however, you will continue to be able to license your copyright in the song to a film producer.

Assignments can be used for many different purposes, such as security for debt, as an asset passed to heirs, or as part of the distribution of assets after a bankruptcy proceeding. Once you assign your rights to somebody else, however, you are permanently giving away your right to control the work. That means if you try to exercise any of the rights you have assigned, you are committing copyright infringement even though you created the work. If you assign your copyright to somebody else and regret the loss, you may be able to buy your copyright back from that person, but whether or not to sell it back to you is up to the assignee.

How Is Copyright Assigned?

Under Section 204 , a transfer of ownership is only valid if the instrument, note, or memorandum of transfer is in writing, signed by the copyright owner or their duly authorized agent. Generally, a certificate of acknowledgment is not required for the transfer to be valid, but it can be used as prima facie evidence that a transfer was executed if it is issued by someone authorized to administer oaths in the United States or, if the transfer is executed abroad, if the certificate is issued by a United States diplomatic or consular official, or a person authorized to administer oaths who also provides a certificate.

Formally recording an assignment with the Copyright Office is not required but can be advantageous.

You do not have to record an assignment in order to assign the interest. However, there are advantages to recording the assignment, such as creating a public record of the transfer details, giving constructive notice to members of the public, establishing priority of rights when there are conflicting transfers of ownership, validating the transfer of the copyright against a third party, or in some cases perfecting a security interest.

Last reviewed October 2023

Intellectual Property Law Center Contents

Intellectual Property Law Center
Copyright Infringement & Related Lawsuits
Copyright Ownership Under the Law
Assignment of Copyrights & Legal Implications
Copyright Licensing Under the Law
Copyright Registration Under the Law
Safe Harbors for Online Service Providers Under Copyright Law
Criminal Copyright Infringement Laws
Enforcement of Copyrights Through Lawsuits & Criminal Charges
Fair Use Defense to Copyright Infringement Lawsuits
Software Development Agreements & Related Legal Concerns
End-User License Agreements Imposing Legal Restrictions on Software
Lists, Directories, and Databases Under Copyright Law
Photos of Buildings and Architecture Under Copyright Law
Photos of Copyrighted or Trademarked Works & the Fair Use Defense to Infringement Lawsuits
Works in the Public Domain After Copyrights Legally Expire
Copyrights and Credits for Songwriters Under the Law
Music Samples and Copyright Infringement Lawsuits
Playing Music in Stores or Restaurants — How to Avoid Copyright Infringement Lawsuits
Consignment Sales by Artists to Stores & Legal Protections
Destruction of Copyrighted Works & Limited Legal Protections
Copyright Legal Forms
Trademark Law
Trade Secret Law
Choosing Among Patent, Copyright, and Trademark for Legal Protection
Intellectual Property Law FAQs
Find an Intellectual Property Lawyer

Related Areas

Small Business Legal Center
Entertainment Law Center
Communications and Internet Law Center
Sports Law Center
Related Areas
Bankruptcy Lawyers
Business Lawyers
Criminal Lawyers
Employment Lawyers
Estate Planning Lawyers
Family Lawyers
Personal Injury Lawyers
Estate Planning
Personal Injury
Business Formation
Business Operations
Intellectual Property
International Trade
Real Estate
Financial Aid
Course Outlines
Law Journals
US Constitution
Regulations
Supreme Court
Circuit Courts
District Courts
Dockets & Filings
State Constitutions
State Codes
State Case Law
Legal Blogs
Business Forms
Product Recalls
Justia Connect Membership
Justia Premium Placements
Justia Elevate (SEO, Websites)
Justia Amplify (PPC, GBP)
Testimonials

Marquette University Law School Faculty Blog

The Copyright Act: Standing and “Right to Sue” Assignments

Post author: Emil Ovbiagele
Post published: November 1, 2017
Post category: Intellectual Property Law / Public
Post comments: 5 Comments

Enforcement Action Rights under the Copyright Act

According to the federal Copyright Act, only “[t]he legal or beneficial owner of an exclusive right under a copyright is entitled , subject to the requirements of section 411, to institute an action for any infringement of that particular right committed while he or she is the owner of it.” 17 U.S.C. § 501(b) (emphasis added).

The Copyright Act lists the following exclusive rights of the owner of a copyright:

(1) to reproduce the copyrighted work in copies or phonorecords; (2) to prepare derivative works based upon the copyrighted work; (3) to distribute copies or phonorecords of the copyrighted work to the public by sale or other transfer of ownership, or by rental, lease, or lending; (4) in the case of literary, musical, dramatic, and choreographic works, pantomimes, and motion pictures and other audiovisual works, to perform the copyrighted work publicly; (5) in the case of literary, musical, dramatic, and choreographic works, pantomimes, and pictorial, graphic, or sculptural works, including the individual images of a motion picture or other audiovisual work, to display the copyrighted work publicly; and (6) in the case of sound recordings, to perform the copyrighted work publicly by means of a digital audio transmission.

17 U.S.C. § 106. But “a person holding a non-exclusive license is not entitled to complain about any alleged infringement of the copyright.” HyperQuest, Inc. v. N’Site Sols., Inc., 632 F.3d 377, 382 (7th Cir. 2011). In order words, to have the requisite standing to sue, a plaintiff must exclusively own one of the enumerated rights listed above. Consequently, enforcement actions are limited to the specific rights exclusively owned. For example, a plaintiff who owns the exclusive rights to perform a literary work can only sue to enforce that specific rights. Such a plaintiff, cannot go after alleged infringers making unauthorized copies of the literary work.

Bare “Right to Sue” Assignments

Most federal courts have concluded that Congress did not intend for the “right to sue” to be a separate right because it was not included as a divisible right under the Act. The Copyright Act does not contemplate any transfer other than an ownership interest along with the enumerated six exclusive rights.

In Righthaven v. Democratic Underground , the imprudence of allowing assignments of such bare rights were made clear. 791 F. Supp. 2d 968 (D. Nev. 2011) In 2011, Righthaven LLC sued Democratic Underground for a five-sentence excerpt of a Las Vegas Review Journal news story that a user posted on the forum, with a link back to the Journal’s website. At the same time this lawsuit was going on, Righthaven had developed quite the litigious reputation. They brought over 200 similar suits.

But Righthaven never created, produced, or distributed any content. Instead, all they did was scour the internet looking for Review-Journal stories posted on blogs and online forums. They brought these suits under a “right to sue” assignment. Righthaven never actually owned an exclusive right to any of the copyrighted materials. They were copyright trolls.

The court stated “Righthaven and Stephens Media have attempted to create a cottage industry of filing copyright claims, making large claims for damages and then settling claims for pennies on the dollar, with defendants who do not want to incur the costs of defending the lawsuits.” Righthaven, LLC v. Democratic Underground, LLC , No. 2:10-cd-1356-RLH-GWF (D. Nev. Apr. 14, 2011), ECF No. 94. Judges who are confronted with these bare “right to sue” cases usually award significant attorney fees to the prevailing defendants, even at the motion to dismiss phase.

Parties intending to convey enforceable exclusive rights to a copyright must shore up their agreements to make the intent clear. And merely sprinkling the “exclusive license” lingo within a licensing or assignment agreement doesn’t suffice. See HyperQuest, Inc. v. N’Site Sols., Inc. 632 F.3d 377 (7th Cir. 2011). Thus, an exclusive right must be exclusive. An assignment is not exclusive if some form of right to limited use and distribution to other third parties is reserved.

In the copyright world, the “substance and effect” of any written assignment must reflect a true, even if temporary, transfer of complete ownership of a copyright interest. Overly aggressive plaintiffs who ignore this simple but important axiom of copyright law, do so at their own peril.

Ponderings of a law professor: moving from law school to law practice, an anything but normal election, it’s a marathon, not a sprint, this post has 5 comments.

I have an overly aggressive defendant who has lots of money, is an internet pirate, has no exclusive or beneficial rights and want to be a defendant real bad!

Rita Hutchens

I represent the exclusive owner of the legal rights in a literary work that has been infringed. My client who is resident abroad intends to give me a Power of Attorney to institute legal proceedings against the infringer. Does my client have the right to do this ?

I had a registered copyright to the software I created for 15 years, but a federal judge found (and the Ninth Circuit affirmed) that my company (no longer under my control) owned my copyrights even though there was no written agreement transferring ownership. See Johnson v. Storix (2017). Storix recorded the judgment with the Copyright Office, but not the actual ownership transfer because it has no written assignment. A federal court has no authority to invalidate a copyright registration or order a copyright transfer except involving common law (and I’m not bankrupt, divorced or dead.)

How can Storix enforce any rights under the Copyright Act if the copyright is still registered to me? Does the Ninth Circuit ruling establish Storix as the copyright owner in other circuits, or would they defer to the 2018 Supreme Court decision in Fourth Estate v. Wallstreet.com requiring a valid registration before instituting an infringement action?

Serious issues, what really is copyright? And why would anybody want to copy other people’s way of thinking. I’ve never had to copyright nobody’s work. A person fails to be a leader but yet a follower. I’m not a business person and then again I lead my own actions. Thank you

Communication key word: The world fails to understand this. Take control of been yourself, trust yourself to do right with whoever you encounter. Thank you

Case: Copyrights/Jurisdiction (C.D. Cal.)

A federal district court in California granted ProQuest LLC’s motion to dismiss for lack of personal jurisdiction an individual’s copyright infringement and unjust enrichment action, based on her academic thesis, which she described as a work of art. The individual claimed that ProQuest engaged in the unauthorized distribution, sales, and accessibility of her work through its platform. The court said it lacks general and specific jurisdiction over ProQuest.

Learn more about Bloomberg Law or Log In to keep reading:

Learn about bloomberg law.

AI-powered legal analytics, workflow tools and premium legal & business news.

Already a subscriber?

Understanding an assignment of copyright agreement

Did you know you can assign, or transfer, your copyright to someone? Find out what information to include in your agreement and how you can make sure your interests are protected.

Find out more about business management

by Ronna L. DeLoe, Esq.

Ronna L. DeLoe is a freelance writer and a published author who has written hundreds of legal articles. She does...

Assignment of copyright

When you create intellectual property such as a book, poem, song, photograph, or painting, copyright laws give you the right to claim ownership of your creative work. Registering your copyright with the U.S. Copyright Office allows others to find out who owns the rights to your creation. As a copyright owner, you can also transfer, or assign, your copyright, as long as you follow the correct procedure.

Woman with short brown hair in art studio leans across desk with art supplies and camera on it to type on laptop

Copyright assignment permits a third party, known as the assignee, to take ownership of the copyright from the owner, or assignor. The assignment must be done in writing to be valid. Although notarization isn't required, it's a good idea to have someone witness the assignor and assignee signing and dating the agreement. Transfer of ownership usually involves monetary exchange, although that's not a requirement.

Registering a copyright with the U.S. Copyright Office isn't a requirement for valid ownership, even in cases of copyright assignment. However, registering provides a way for third parties to discern who owns the copyright. Because you don't have to file the transfer, a short-form assignment contract is sufficient for filing. This document usually contains only limited details of the work you're assigning, including the copyright number (if applicable), the signatures of both parties, the signature of a witness if desired, and the date of the assignment.

Just like in any other contract, a copyright assignment should contain certain information , such as the amount of consideration, or money, being exchanged. When assigning your copyright, the other party should provide some amount of consideration. Contracts usually include the language “for other good and valuable consideration," and courts have held that even one dollar is acceptable. As long as each party to the contract is getting something in return and the contract is not made under duress or pressure, the contract is valid.

Likewise, as the owner of the copyright, you have the right to assign all or part of it. If you assign your entire copyright to the other party, you are giving up all of your rights to your own copyright. In the case of a book, for example, assigning only part of your copyright could mean:

Assigning it to one party for use as a movie and to another for use as a television show
Assigning one party the original version and another party a translated version
Assigning rights to different types of books, such as an audiobook, a traditional print book, and an e-book
A partial assignment for a limited duration, if you specify such in your agreement

Copyright laws protect you in case your work of intellectual property becomes famous or is worth money later on. While you can't get your copyright back for many years after your assignment unless the new owner consents otherwise, current copyright law allows you to terminate your copyright assignment after 35 years.

For example, songwriters who assigned their copyright to what are now legendary songs from the 1960s or 1970s can now recover the copyright to their songs, many of which have increased in value due to their use in commercials and television shows. The writer of "YMCA," a member of the Village People, successfully recovered his copyright by invoking his termination rights after the 35-year period.

If you're a freelancer who creates a work such as a poetry collection, you own the copyright of the poetry book and can assign the copyright, if you wish. If, however, you're employed by someone to write poems, either as an employee or as an independent contractor under their direction, your creation is sometimes called a work for hire .

Creation of intellectual property under a work-for-hire contract means that you don't own the copyright. Instead, whoever hired you owns it, and unless that person gives you permission to purchase or own the copyright, you cannot transfer it to anyone else.

The more control a client has over how and when you're creating the intellectual property, the more likely you're regarded as an employee rather than an independent contractor. An employer-employee relationship generally assures that the employer owns the copyright. If, on the other hand, you're an independent contractor and have more creative control over your project than an employee would have, then you're the copyright owner.

Because intellectual property is an extremely specialized area of the law, it's recommended that you use a copyright attorney or similar intellectual property specialist to assist in any assignments. You can start protecting your creative interests by registering your copyright .

Published By Stanford Copyright and Fair Use Center

Chapter 2. copyright ownership and transfer.

201. Ownership of copyright
202. Ownership of copyright as distinct from ownership of material object
203. Termination of transfers and licenses granted by the author
204. Execution of transfers of copyright ownership
205. Recordation of transfers and other documents

§ 201. Ownership of copyright 1

(a) Initial Ownership. — Copyright in a work protected under this title vests initially in the author or authors of the work. The authors of a joint work are coowner of copyright in the work.

(b) Works Made for Hire. — In the case of a work made for hire, the employer or other person for whom the work was prepared is considered the author for purposes of this title, and, unless the parties have expressly agreed otherwise in a written instrument signed by them, owns all of the rights comprised in the copyright.

(c) Contributions to Collective Works. — Copyright in each separate contribution to a collective work is distinct from copyright in the collective work as a whole, and vests initially in the author of the contribution. In the absence of an express transfer of the copyright or of any rights under it, the owner of copyright in the collective work is presumed to have acquired only the privilege of reproducing and distributing the contribution as part of that particular collective work, any revision of that collective work, and any later collective work in the same series.

(d) Transfer of Ownership. —

(1) The ownership of a copyright may be transferred in whole or in part by any means of conveyance or by operation of law, and may be bequeathed by will or pass as personal property by the applicable laws of intestate succession.

(2) Any of the exclusive rights comprised in a copyright, including any subdivision of any of the rights specified by section 106, may be transferred as provided by clause (1) and owned separately. The owner of any particular exclusive right is entitled, to the extent of that right, to all of the protection and remedies accorded to the copyright owner by this title.

(e) Involuntary Transfer. — When an individual author’s ownership of a copyright, or of any of the exclusive rights under a copyright, has not previously been transferred voluntarily by that individual author, no action by any governmental body or other official or organization purporting to seize, expropriate, transfer, or exercise rights of ownership with respect to the copyright, or any of the exclusive rights under a copyright, shall be given effect under this title, except as provided under title 11. 2

§ 202. Ownership of copyright as distinct from ownership of material object

Ownership of a copyright, or of any of the exclusive rights under a copyright, is distinct from ownership of any material object in which the work is embodied. Transfer of ownership of any material object, including the copy or phonorecord in which the work is first fixed, does not of itself convey any rights in the copyrighted work embodied in the object; nor, in the absence of an agreement, does transfer of ownership of a copyright or of any exclusive rights under a copyright convey property rights in any material object.

§ 203. Termination of transfers and licenses granted by the author 3

(a) Conditions for Termination. — In the case of any work other than a work made for hire, the exclusive or nonexclusive grant of a transfer or license of copyright or of any right under a copyright, executed by the author on or after January 1, 1978, otherwise than by will, is subject to termination under the following conditions:

(1) In the case of a grant executed by one author, termination of the grant may be effected by that author or, if the author is dead, by the person or persons who, under clause (2) of this subsection, own and are entitled to exercise a total of more than one-half of that author’s termination interest. In the case of a grant executed by two or more authors of a joint work, termination of the grant may be effected by a majority of the authors who executed it; if any of such authors is dead, the termination interest of any such author may be exercised as a unit by the person or persons who, under clause (2) of this subsection, own and are entitled to exercise a total of more than one-half of that author’s interest.

(2) Where an author is dead, his or her termination interest is owned, and may be exercised, as follows:

(A) The widow or widower owns the author’s entire termination interest unless there are any surviving children or grandchildren of the author, in which case the widow or widower owns one-half of the author’s interest.

(B) The author’s surviving children, and the surviving children of any dead child of the author, own the author’s entire termination interest unless there is a widow or widower, in which case the ownership of one-half of the author’s interest is divided among them.

(C) The rights of the author’s children and grandchildren are in all cases divided among them and exercised on a per stirpes basis according to the number of such author’s children represented; the share of the children of a dead child in a termination interest can be exercised only by the action of a majority of them.

(D) In the event that the author’s widow or widower, children, and grandchildren are not living, the author’s executor, administrator, personal representative, or trustee shall own the author’s entire termination interest.

(3) Termination of the grant may be effected at any time during a period of five years beginning at the end of thirty-five years from the date of execution of the grant; or, if the grant covers the right of publication of the work, the period begins at the end of thirty-five years from the date of publication of the work under the grant or at the end of forty years from the date of execution of the grant, whichever term ends earlier.

(4) The termination shall be effected by serving an advance notice in writing, signed by the number and proportion of owners of termination interests required under clauses (1) and (2) of this subsection, or by their duly authorized agents, upon the grantee or the grantee’s successor in title.

(A) The notice shall state the effective date of the termination, which shall fall within the five-year period specified by clause (3) of this subsection, and the notice shall be served not less than two or more than ten years before that date. A copy of the notice shall be recorded in the Copyright Office before the effective date of termination, as a condition to its taking effect.

(B) The notice shall comply, in form, content, and manner of service, with requirements that the Register of Copyrights shall prescribe by regulation.

(5) Termination of the grant may be effected notwithstanding any agreement to the contrary, including an agreement to make a will or to make any future grant.

(b) Effect of Termination. — Upon the effective date of termination, all rights under this title that were covered by the terminated grants revert to the author, authors, and other persons owning termination interests under clauses (1) and (2) of subsection (a), including those owners who did not join in signing the notice of termination under clause (4) of subsection (a), but with the following limitations:

(1) A derivative work prepared under authority of the grant before its termination may continue to be utilized under the terms of the grant after its termination, but this privilege does not extend to the preparation after the termination of other derivative works based upon the copyrighted work covered by the terminated grant.

(2) The future rights that will revert upon termination of the grant become vested on the date the notice of termination has been served as provided by clause (4) of subsection (a). The rights vest in the author, authors, and other persons named in, and in the proportionate shares provided by, clauses (1) and (2) of subsection (a).

(3) Subject to the provisions of clause (4) of this subsection, a further grant, or agreement to make a further grant, of any right covered by a terminated grant is valid only if it is signed by the same number and proportion of the owners, in whom the right has vested under clause (2) of this subsection, as are required to terminate the grant under clauses (1) and (2) of subsection (a). Such further grant or agreement is effective with respect to all of the persons in whom the right it covers has vested under clause (2) of this subsection, including those who did not join in signing it. If any person dies after rights under a terminated grant have vested in him or her, that person’s legal representatives, legatees, or heirs at law represent him or her for purposes of this clause.

(4) A further grant, or agreement to make a further grant, of any right covered by a terminated grant is valid only if it is made after the effective date of the termination. As an exception, however, an agreement for such a further grant may be made between the persons provided by clause (3) of this subsection and the original grantee or such grantee’s successor in title, after the notice of termination has been served as provided by clause (4) of subsection (a).

(5) Termination of a grant under this section affects only those rights covered by the grants that arise under this title, and in no way affects rights arising under any other Federal, State, or foreign laws.

(6) Unless and until termination is effected under this section, the grant, if it does not provide otherwise, continues in effect for the term of copyright provided by this title.

§ 204. Execution of transfers of copyright ownership

(a) A transfer of copyright ownership, other than by operation of law, is not valid unless an instrument of conveyance, or a note or memorandum of the transfer, is in writing and signed by the owner of the rights conveyed or such owner’s duly authorized agent.

(b) A certificate of acknowledgment is not required for the validity of a transfer, but is prima facie evidence of the execution of the transfer if —

(1) in the case of a transfer executed in the United States, the certificate is issued by a person authorized to administer oaths within the United States; or

(2) in the case of a transfer executed in a foreign country, the certificate is issued by a diplomatic or consular officer of the United States, or by a person authorized to administer oaths whose authority is proved by a certificate of such an officer.

§ 205. Recordation of transfers and other documents 4

(a) Conditions for Recordation. — Any transfer of copyright ownership or other document pertaining to a copyright may be recorded in the Copyright Office if the document filed for recordation bears the actual signature of the person who executed it, or if it is accompanied by a sworn or official certification that it is a true copy of the original, signed document.

(b) Certificate of Recordation. — The Register of Copyrights shall, upon receipt of a document as provided by subsection (a) and of the fee provided by section 708, record the document and return it with a certificate of recordation.

(c) Recordation as Constructive Notice. — Recordation of a document in the Copyright Office gives all persons constructive notice of the facts stated in the recorded document, but only if —

(1) the document, or material attached to it, specifically identifies the work to which it pertains so that, after the document is indexed by the Register of Copyrights, it would be revealed by a reasonable search under the title or registration number of the work; and

(2) registration has been made for the work.

(d) Priority between Conflicting Transfers. — As between two conflicting transfers, the one executed first prevails if it is recorded, in the manner required to give constructive notice under subsection (c), within one month after its execution in the United States or within two months after its execution outside the United States, or at any time before recordation in such manner of the later transfer. Otherwise the later transfer prevails if recorded first in such manner, and if taken in good faith, for valuable consideration or on the basis of a binding promise to pay royalties, and without notice of the earlier transfer.

(e) Priority between Conflicting Transfer of Ownership and Nonexclusive License. — A nonexclusive license, whether recorded or not, prevails over a conflicting transfer of copyright ownership if the license is evidenced by a written instrument signed by the owner of the rights licensed or such owner’s duly authorized agent, and if

(1) the license was taken before execution of the transfer; or

(2) the license was taken in good faith before recordation of the transfer and without notice of it.

Chapter 2 Endnotes

1 In 1978, section 201(e) was amended by deleting the period at the end and adding “, except as provided under title 11.”

2 Title 11 of the United States Code is entitled “Bankruptcy.”

3 In 1998, the Sonny Bono Copyright Term Extension Act amended section 203 by deleting “by his widow or her widower and his or her grandchildren” from the first sentence in paragraph (2) of subsection (a) and by adding subparagraph (D) to paragraph (2). Pub. L. No. 105-298, 112 Stat. 2827, 2829.

4 The Berne Convention Implementation Act of 1988 amended section 205 by deleting subsection (d) and redesignating subsections (e) and (f) as subsections (d) and (e), respectively. Pub. L. No. 100-568, 102 Stat. 2853, 2857.

Find a Lawyer
Legal Topics
Intellectual Property Law

Copyright Licensing and Assignment

(This may not be the same place you live)

What Is Copyright Licensing?

Copyright licensing is the transfer of one or more of a copyright owner’s exclusive rights from the owner to another person or entity so they can make use of them. These rights include the rights to reproduce the work, create derivative works, distribute the work to the public, publicly display visual works, and digitally transmit sound records.

Most often, the transfer of a right or rights is done either with an assignment or a license. With a license, the copyright owner retains their ownership of any right that is transferred. An assignment, on the other hand, transfers all exclusive rights and is comparable to a sale. The original copyright owner basically sells their rights to another person or entity who then essentially owns them.

When an owner assigns their rights to another, they give up the right to control how the rights are used. This is the same as selling any item of personal property; the seller cannot control how the buyer uses the item once it has been sold.

Generally, a license is the preferred type of transaction, if the original copyright holder wants to continue exercising their interests and control over their work. For example, if a person assigns their copyright in a song to a music producer, the decision about whether to allow a film producer to use the song in a film belongs to the producer and not to the original copyright holder.

This result can be avoided if the copyright owner transfers an interest or interests in a song by way of a licensing agreement. Then, the copyright owner retains the ability to license an interest or interests in the song to another entity, e.g., a film producer.

The assignment of a copyright is a form of property, i.e., intellectual property, that can be used like any other item of property that has value. For example, it could be used as security for a loan, bequeathed to heirs, or simply transferred for a price or other consideration .

Once rights have been assigned to another person or entity, the original owner has permanently transferred their right to control the copyrighted work. The original owner would be committing copyright infringement if they were to try to make use of any of the rights that they assigned.

If an original owner were to regret an assignment that they made, they would be able to try to buy back their copyright from the assignee. Then, it would be the choice of the assignee whether to sell their interest or not.

Under federal copyright law, a transfer of ownership is only valid if there is something in writing, e.g., a written assignment agreement, note, or memorandum of transfer, signed by the owner of the copyright or their agent.

The law does not require recording of an assignment with the U.S. Copyright Office, but there are advantages to doing it. For example, it creates a public record of the exact details of the transfer and gives notice to members of the public. It can set the priority of rights if there have been conflicting transfers of ownership. It can validate the transfer of the copyright to one person or entity against another.

What Happens if I Transfer My Exclusive Rights to Another Person?

Can i license the same right to more than one person, how do i transfer my rights to another person, what is a copyright assignment, should i record the transfer of copyright ownership, are transfers permanent, do i need a lawyer to license my copyright.

If the owner of a copyright licenses one or more of their exclusive rights to only one other person or entity with no intention of granting the same right to any other person or entity, the person has granted them an exclusive license.

An exclusive license gives its owner the right to exclude all others, including the original copyright owner, from exercising the rights granted in the license. A copyright owner may choose to grant an exclusive license for several reasons, including:

Profiting from their copyright: The licensee may pay the copyright owner for the exclusive use of one or more of their rights;
Publicity: For example, the author of a book might authorize a movie studio to produce a movie based on the book in order to draw increased publicity to the author and the book. Of course, it could prove to be highly profitable as well.

A person can license the same right to more than one person as long as they make each and every licensee aware of the fact that they are not getting an exclusive license but rather a nonexclusive one. Presumably, a copyright owner could grant an exclusive license for a larger fee than a non-exclusive one.

If a copyright owner wants to transfer one or more of their rights to another person exclusively, they must put the transfer in writing and sign it. However, the creation of a nonexclusive license requires no written document. In fact, nonexclusive licenses can even be implied if the conduct of the parties indicates licensing.

As noted above, a copyright assignment can be described as a kind of exclusive license in which a copyright owner transfers all of his exclusive rights to another person. Like an exclusive license, a copyright assignment must be in writing.

Recordation of a copyright interest with the U.S. Copyright Office is not required to make it valid, but, again, it is a good idea, especially from the perspective of the person who acquires the interest. By recording the license or assignment, they can protect their rights in the event that the copyright owner licenses to someone else. If a person is the first to receive a license, promptly recording the license can protect them from losing their rights to a competing licensee in the future.

If a copyright owner has placed no time restrictions on a license, the transfer of rights is considered to be permanent for a period of 35 years. At that point, the original copyright owner has a 5-year window in which to exercise their right to terminate any licenses or assignments. If the original copyright owner chooses to end a license at this point, the licensee has to give up all the rights granted in the license.

Of course, a copyright owner can grant a license for a specified period of time. They would have to draft a licensing agreement, perhaps with the help of an intellectual property lawyer, that grants the exact rights the owner wants to grant for a desired period of time with any other conditions and restrictions that they want to place on the grant.

The licensing of a copyright can be complex. LegalMatch.com can connect you to an experienced copyright attorney who can draft a licensing agreement for your copyright that provides you with the interest you want and protects it from the claims of others.

Or, if you are involved in a dispute about an existing license, your lawyer can help you resolve it. A copyright attorney can draft an assignment agreement or other form of assignment as well.

Your lawyer can negotiate a resolution or represent you in court if that should become necessary.

Need a Copyright Lawyer in your Area?

Connecticut
Massachusetts
Mississippi
New Hampshire
North Carolina
North Dakota
Pennsylvania
Rhode Island
South Carolina
South Dakota
West Virginia

Susan Nerlinger

LegalMatch Legal Writer

Updating Author

Susan is a member of the State Bar of California. She received her J.D. degree in 1983 from the University of California, Hastings College of Law and practiced plaintiff’s personal injury law for 8 years in California. She also taught civil procedure in the Paralegal program at Santa Clara University. She then taught English as a foreign language for eight years in the Czech Republic. Most recently, she taught English as a second language for Montgomery County Public Schools in suburban Washington, D.C. Now she devotes her time to writing on legal and environmental topics. You can follow her on her LinkedIn page. Read More

Ken LaMance

Senior Editor

Original Author

Jose Rivera

Managing Editor

Copyright Infringement Lawyers Near You
Circumvention of Technological Measures that Protect Copyrighted Material
Art Lawyers
Due Diligence for Copyright
Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA)
What Is Copyleft?
Secondary Copyright Infringement
Copyright Definition
Public Domain Music
Non-Copyrighted Music Lawyers
Music Download Lawyers
Copyright Infringement Defenses
Copyright Infringement
Music Licensing Agreement
Copyright Infringement Penalties
What is Copyright?
Domain Name Infringement
E-Book Readers and Copyright Laws
Book Copyright Law
Poor Man's Copyright
Online Copyright Infringement Liability Limitation Act Lawyers
Website Copyright Infringement
Software Piracy Law
Copyright Infringement: Minimum Copying Standards
Movie Piracy Laws
Protecting My Artwork Lawyers
Removing a Work of Art From a Building
Copyright Protection for Sound Recordings
Playing Music in Public
File Sharing Lawyers

Discover the Trustworthy LegalMatch Advantage

No fee to present your case
Choose from lawyers in your area
A 100% confidential service

How does LegalMatch work?

Law Library Disclaimer

16 people have successfully posted their cases

Law Articles

Assignment of Copyright – Explained With Modes and Disputes

Original work may not be reproduced, distributed, or sold by anybody other than the copyright owner without that owner’s consent. As a result, the law allows the copyright owner to assign ownership to a third party.

The term “copyright assignment” describes the transfer of ownership or rights in a work that has been granted copyright from the original copyright holder (the “ assignor “) to a different party (the “ assignee “). Through a legal procedure, the assignor gives up their ownership of the work and gives the assignee the only authority to reproduce, distribute, display, perform, or alter it.

This article discusses the concept of copyright assignment, which involves the transfer of ownership or rights in a copyrighted work from the original copyright holder (assignor) to another party (assignee). The article also explains the various aspects of copyright assignment, including its mode of assignment and disputes with respect to the assignment of copyright.

Assignment of Copyright

(Section 18 of the Copyright Act, 1957 )

The owner of the current work or the potential owner of the future work may assign the copyright. It may be fully or partially allocated. Limitations may apply to all or a portion of the copyright.

Additionally, if future work is assigned, the assignment will become effective when the new work is created. In future works, “assignee” includes the assignee’s legal representative if they die before the work is created.

The court ruled in Saregama India Ltd. vs Suresh Jindal And Ors. that the copyright owner to a future work has the right to assign the copyright, in whole or in part, to a third party. This indicates that the owner may assign the copyright ownership for the entire term or only a portion.

The assignee is regarded as the legal owner of the copyright after the assignment is made, and the Copyright Act recognises all associated rights and benefits. As mentioned above, the ruling affirms that copyright ownership can be transferred by assignment, enabling people or organisations to obtain and exercise control over the rights connected to the copyrighted work.

Mode of Assignment of Copyright

(Section 19 of the Copyright Act, 1957)

Every assignment of the copyright to a work must be made in writing and be signed by the assignor or an authorised representative. Only that assignment will be accepted. Any assigned work must include all relevant information, including the assignment, length, rights, and geographic scope.

The amount of any royalties or other payments made to the author or his legal heirs during the assignment should also be specified. Any revisions, extensions, or terminations of the assignment are subject to the mutually agreed-upon terms and circumstances.

Let’s say the assignee fails to utilise the right granted during the assignment within a year of receiving it. If such a thing occurs, the assignment of those rights will be presumed to have terminated unless otherwise specified in the assignment. When the assignment time and geographical scope are not specified, they will be assumed to be five years from the date of the assignment and inside India, respectively.

The Bombay High Court considered whether the assignment of video rights included the right of satellite transmission in the case of Video Master vs Nishi Production . The court accepted the defendant’s claim that several public communication channels, such as satellite broadcasting, video TV, and terrestrial television broadcasting, each constituted a distinct copyright.

As a result, the film’s owner may transfer these rights to other people or companies. The court concluded that the video copyright granted to the plaintiff was separate from the copyright for the satellite transmission of the movie. Consequently, the satellite broadcast right was not part of the assignment.

Disputes With Respect to the Assignment of Copyright

(Section 19A of the Copyright Act, 1957)

After receiving a complaint from the assignor and completing an investigation, the appellate board has the authority to revoke the assignment or issue any orders it sees suitable when the assignee fails to execute the powers granted to him if such failure is not a result of any action or inaction on the part of the assignor.

If the assignor is also the author, the appellate board should hold off on issuing any revocation unless it is established that the terms of the assignment are harsh to the assignor. Additionally, no revocation may be made for five years if an assignment has been made.

The appellate board should handle copyright assignment complaints promptly and with diligence. They have a time limit of six months from the date of receiving the complaint to reach a final decision. If, for any reason, there is a delay beyond this period, the appellate board must explain the reasons for the delay. The goal is to ensure that copyright disputes are resolved promptly and transparently.

In this evolving world, copyright assignment is an unavoidable need. People are not always able to rely on themselves. The ownership of the work must be transferred to properly frame the art and realise the original piece’s full creative potential.

Furthermore, copyright assignment aids in the seamless development of the creative process when several creative minds collaborate or when a work is adapted across various media. It allows for fresh viewpoints, interpretations, and variations that could improve the original work or investigate other creative paths.

Read Next: Doctrine of Merger Under Copyright Law

Latest Posts

What Is a Bill of Lading and Its Usage in Shipping & Logistics? - 6th April 2024
Aashna Roy vs Yogesh Deveshwar & Anr – Case Explained - 2nd April 2024
Social Security and Its Nine Important Elements - 1st April 2024

How to Start Studying Law – For New, Existing, and Old Students

How to Study and Prepare for Judiciary Exams (13 tips)

Tips, Syllabus, Exam Date, Bare Acts and MCQ Tests for AIBE

11 Tips to Pass AIBE With Bare Acts and MCQ Tests in 2024

How to Write the Best Answer in Judiciary Mains Exam

What Jobs and Career Options are There After Law

10 Legal Jobs and Career Options After Law in 2024

Best Books for Judiciary Exam Preparation in 2024

My name is Ankur . I am a law graduate. I was my college topper for five years. In March 2018, I started WritingLaw.com . The main motive was to make a modern law website that is clean and comfortable.

Everything is going well . This is because of law students, advocates, judges and professors like you, who give me satisfaction, hope and the motivation to keep working. Thank you for your love and support. I hope you have a fruitful time here.

Law Study Material

Assignment and Licensing of Copyrights under Copyrights Act

Intellectual Property Rights Subject-wise Law Notes
January 8, 2021

Introduction

IP is an intellectual work which is produced by intellectual human brain. For e.g. literary work, musical work, inventions, etc. it is an intangible property. It is described as property because it is capable of sale, purchase, mortgage, etc. the owner if IP has rights over his intangible property. No one can make use of IP without the consent of the owner. IP is made to protect their rights and the infringement.

Copyright is a protection given to the creators of certain types of works as an acknowledgment to their intellectual input [1] . The objective of copyright has always been the protection of the interest of a creator, coupled with dissemination of knowledge. Though this protection started with the recognition of rights of authors in their books, but modern technology has substantially changed the nature of work and its mode of exploitation.

Economic rights allow an owner to reap economic benefits from his intellectual creations. According to section 14 of the Copyright Act, 1957, different rights are recognised with respect to the nature of the work. As per this section, it is the exclusive right of the owner to do or authorise the doing of the acts provided thereunder.

Today copyright includes a variety of industries like: the information industry and the entertainment industry and industrial design.

Assignment of Copyrights : Section 18 of Copyrights Act

The owner of the copyright of a work has the right to assign his copyright to any other person. The effect of assignment is that the assignee becomes entitled to all the rights related to the copyright to the assigned work. [2] However, mere grant of right to publish and sell the copyrighted work amounts to publishing right and not assignment of copyright.

Where the assignee of a copyright becomes entitled to any right comprised in the copyright, he shall be treated as the owner of the copyright in respect of those rights. The assignor shall also be treated as the owner of copyright with respect to unassigned rights. The legal representatives of the assignee shall be entitled to the benefits of assignment, if the assignee dies before the work comes into existence.

In Video Master v. Nishi Production [3] , the Bombay High Court considered the issue whether assignment of video rights would include the right of satellite broadcast as well. The Court agreed with the contentions of defendant that there were different modes of communication to the public such as terrestrial television broadcasting (Doordarshan), satellite broadcasting and video TV. The owner of the film had separate copyright in all those modes, and he could assign it to different persons. Thus, satellite broadcast copyright of film was a separate right of the owner of the film and the video copyright assigned to the plaintiff would not include this.

Mode of Assignment: Section 18 of Copyrights Act

As per section 19, assignment of copyright is valid only if it is in writing and signed by the assignor or his duly authorized agent. The assignment of a copyright in a work should identify the work and specify kind of rights assigned and the duration and territorial extent of such assignment. Further, it should specify the amount of royalty payable, if any, to the author or his legal heirs during the continuance of assignment and the assignment will be subject to revision, extension or termination on terms mutually agreed upon by the parties.

If the period of assignment is not mentioned it will be deemed to be taken as five years from the date of assignment. If the territorial extent of such assignment is not stipulated, it will be taken as applicable in whole of India.

Also, Section 19(8) contemplates that the assignment of copyright work against the terms and conditions on which rights have been assigned to a particular copyright society where the author of the work is a member shall be void. Further, Section 19(9) and section 19(10) opine that the assignment of copyright for making cinematograph film or sound recording shall not affect the right of the author to claim an equal share of the royalties and consideration payable with respect to use of his protected work.

In Saregama India Ltd v. Suresh Jindal [4] , it was held that the owner of the copyright in a future work may assign the copyright to any person either wholly or partially for the whole of the copyright or any part thereof and once the assignment is made the assignee for the purpose of this Act is treated as the owner of the copyright.

Licensing of Copyright

The owner of copyright may grant a license to do any of the act in respect of which he has an exclusive right to do. The license can be classified into following categories:

Voluntary license: : Section 18 of Copyrights Act

The author or the copyright owner has exclusive rights in his creative work and he alone has right to grant license with respect to such work. According to section 30 of the Copyright Act 1957, the owner of the copyright in a work may grant any interest in his copyright to any person by license in writing, which is to be signed by him or by his duly authorised agent. A license can be granted not only in existing work but also in respect of the future work, in this situation assignment shall come into force when such future work comes into existence. Where a licensee of the copyright in a future work dies before such work comes into existence, his legal representatives shall be entitled to the benefit of the license if there is no provision to contrary.

The mode of license is like an assignment deed, with necessary adaptations and modifications in section 19 (section 30A). Therefore, like an assignment, a license deed in relation to a work should comprise of following particulars:

Duration of license
The rights which have been licensed
Territorial extent of the licensed
The quantum of royalty payable
Terms regarding revision
Extension and termination

Voluntary licenses can be:

Exclusive – The term exclusive license has been defined in Section 2(j) as a license which confers on the licensee and persons authorized by him, to the exclusion of all other persons, any right comprised in the copyright work.

Non-exclusive – It does not confer right of exclusion. It is mere grant of an authority to do a particular thing which otherwise would have constituted an infringement. When owner grants an exclusive right, he denudes himself of all rights and retains no claim on the economic rights so transferred.

Co-exclusive – Here the licensor grants a license to more than one licensee but agrees that it will only grant licences to a limited group of other licensees.

Sole license – Where only the licensor and the licensee can use it to the exclusion of any other third party.

Implied license – Author impliedly allows or permits the use of his work. For example, he had knowledge that someone is using his work but he did not take any action.

Compulsory Licenses

Compulsory and statutory licenses can impact both the identity of the licensee who the owner chooses to deal with and the terms, including rates of royalty, that the owner may stipulate for such dealing. Viewed from this perspective, compulsory licenses are less of an infraction on owner autonomy, on both these counts. The owner does retain a fair bit of autonomy to enter into appropriate licensing arrangements with those who he may deem fit, and he is also permitted to negotiate on the terms of the license within the zone of reasonableness. Normally, it is an unreasonable refusal to deal with a person that gives rise to a compulsory license. This brings us to the third important distinction between a compulsory and statutory license. The former is always granted upon specific application by an individual to the competent authority. The latter, on the other hand, is a blanket fixation of rates of royalty by the authority and a grant of standardised licenses to all those who are interested in availing the same. The owner, as a necessary corollary, has no autonomy on the identity of those who obtain the license, or what they pay as royalty for the same.

Categories of Compulsory Licenses

There are five main categories of compulsory licenses currently operating in India.

These are:

1. Licenses in respect of works unreasonably withheld from the public;

2. Licenses in respect of orphan works;

3. Licenses in respect of works for the differently abled;

4. Licenses in respect of translations;

5. Licenses in respect of reproduction and sale of works unavailable in India.

Statutory Licenses

As seen from the above discussion of compulsory licenses, such licenses can be understood as a particularised expropriation of owner autonomy in respect of the copyrighted work. The need for such expropriation arises only upon acts or inaction on the part of the owner that render the work unavailable to the public or differently abled persons. Statutory licenses, on the other hand, do not require any examination into the conduct of the owner. It attempts a wholesale expropriation of owner autonomy, once the work fits within the broader class of works that can be so licensed.

There are two such categories of statutory licenses, namely cover version recording licenses (Section 31C) and broadcasting licenses (Section 31D).

The first has existed, though as part of the fair dealing exceptions in Section 52, from the very beginning. The second is a very recent addition to the Act vide the 2012 amendment.

The term ‘assignment’ and ‘license’ are not interchangeable. An assignment is different from a license. Generally, in absence of any provision to the contrary the assignee becomes the owner of the assigned work, whereas in case of a license the licensee gets the right to exercise particular rights only.

An assignment may be general, i.e. without limitation or an assignment may be subject to limitations. It may be for the whole term of copyright or any part thereof. An assignment transfers an interest in and deals with copyright itself as provided under section 14 of the Act, but license does not convey the copyright but only grants a right to do something, which in absence of license would be unlawful. An assignment transfers title in copyright, a license merely permits certain things to be done by licensee. The assignee being invested with the title in the copyright may reassign [5] .

[1] This is known as the ‘Doctrine of Sweat of the Brow’, whereby a work is given copyright protection if the author has applied ‘labour, skill or judgment’ in creating the work irrespective of the level of originality in the work. Evolved from the decision in Ladbroke v William Hill, [1964] 1 All E.R. 465.

[2] Section 18(2); Copyright Act, 1957.

[3] 23 IPLR 388 (1998).

[4] 2007 (34) PTC 522 (Cal).

[5] Deshmukh & co (publishers) pvt ltd v/s avinash vishnu khadekar 2006 (32) PTC 358 (Bom)

Author Name: Muskaan Mathur [Student, Savitribai Phule, Pune University (SPPU)]

You might like

Audi Alteram Partem in Administrative Law

Appointment and Removal of Directors in Companies Act 2013

Advantages and Disadvantages of Alternative Dispute Resolution

The IPThink-Tank

Where ideas meet success....

Jun 27, 2021

Assignment, Transmission, And Relinquishment Of Copyright : An Overview

Signifying the objective of copyright as being the step towards safeguarding the interest of a creator alongside the dispersal of knowledge, the protection that was rendered initially with recognizing and identifying the rights of authors in their books, is with time and evolution in technology, witnessing a major change in the nature of work and its mode of exploitation. Therefore, the association of monetary benefits and copyright work introduces the aspect of economic rights. The Copyright Act, 1957 as amended in 2012, sets quite the bandwidth for creators and authors for acquiring pecuniary benefits alongside success, in the process of encouraging continuous creativity and innovation from creators in the future.

When talking of assigning copyright, it certainly bears a purpose. That is, in this process, the assignee gets the right to exploit the innovation for a stipulated time within a particular region. The assignor, on the other hand, receives a royalty. The owner of the copyright of a work is vested with the authority to assign his copyright to another person. Thereafter, the assignee of the copyright becomes entitled to any right falling within the ambit of the copyright and shall be treated as the owner of the copyright in respect of those rights. When the owner of a copyright dies, if he dies intestate then his copyright passes on to his representatives. Section 18 thereafter, also goes on to throw light upon the aspect of an owner of copyright assigning the right in an existing work as well. As per Section 18, a prospective owner, the person who is not the first owner in the future work, can assign the copyright. But, again, as laid down by the proviso of this section, the assignment can only take place after that particular work comes into existence, not before that.

But assignment directly doesn't indicate an absolute assignment. The intention of the parties associated with the nature and extent of the assignment has to be worked out from the agreement. It was seen in the case of Saregama India Ltd. vs. Suresh Jindal (2007) , that if an assignment has been made for a limited period in line with the agreement, then, one cannot contend on the basis of the assignment of copyright rendering absolute ownership for an unlimited period.

The conditions for assigning a copyright have been laid under Section 19 of the Copyright Act, 1957. It is quite significant to be aware of the fact that the assignment has to be rendered in writing and signed by the assignor or an authorized agent, otherwise, it shall not be valid. A careful reading of the agreement and straining out the intentions of the parties are quite crucial since the copyright grants are often misused by the owners.

Relinquishment of the copyright requires the author to give notice as per the set form to the Registrar of Copyrights or via public notice. The Registrar then publishes the notice in the Official Gazette or in a different way. Within 14 days from the publication of the notice in the Official Gazette shall post the notice on the official website so that it remains in the public domain for not less than 3 years. As per Section 21 (1) and (2), the relinquishment of copyright shall not affect any pre-existing rights in favour of any person on the date of the notice. Section 21 goes on to provide the owner of a work the right to relinquish all or any of the rights in a work. Relinquishment indicates the handing over of the rights in the copyrighted work, also meaning the author would no more have the rights surrendered and cannot claim ownership over it. The author can determine the rights that they want to relinquish.

https://selvams.com/india/copyrights/relinquishment-of-copyright-in-india/

https://blog.ipleaders.in/concept-assignment-copyright/

https://taxguru.in/corporate-law/assignment-copyrights.html

https://www.mondaq.com/india/copyright/854828/assignment-and-licensing-of-copyright

Comentários

an image, when javascript is unavailable

The Definitive Voice of Entertainment News

Subscribe for full access to The Hollywood Reporter

site categories

Paramount wins ‘top gun’ copyright lawsuit.

The court agreed with the studio that the movie and magazine article aren't substantially similar and that any similarities are unprotectable facts not covered by copyright law.

By Winston Cho

Winston Cho

Share this article on Facebook
Share this article on Twitter
Share this article on Flipboard
Share this article on Email
Show additional share options
Share this article on Linkedin
Share this article on Pinit
Share this article on Reddit
Share this article on Tumblr
Share this article on Whatsapp
Share this article on Print
Share this article on Comment

TOP GUN: MAVERICK, (aka TOP GUN 2), Tom Cruise, 2022.

Paramount has prevailed in a copyright lawsuit, brought by the heirs to the author of a 1983 magazine story that inspired the original Top Gun , accusing the studio of forging ahead with the blockbuster sequel without renegotiating a new license.

THR Newsletters

More from The Hollywood Reporter

Rooster teeth podcast network sold to night talent management, two years after warnermedia merged with discovery, debt and megadeal questions loom, los angeles times officially names terry tang its executive editor, fresh off epic games deal, disney bolsters video game executive ranks, streaming profit report: a year spent chasing netflix, women’s sports’ tv rights boom may have finally arrived.

UK & Ireland

How is this helpful for me?

Claim the judgments where you have appeared by linking them directly to your profile and maintain a record of your body of work.
Interact directly with CaseMine users looking for advocates in your area of specialization.
Creating a unique profile web page containing interviews, posts, articles, as well as the cases you have appeared in, greatly enhances your digital presence on search engines such Google and Bing, resulting in increased client interest.
The cases linked on your profile facilitate Casemine's artificial intelligence engine in recommending you to potential clients who might be interested in availing your services for similar matters.

Know more

SUGGESTIONS

Visual Try our Visuals feature which gives you an instant snapshot of the most relevant and landmark case laws.">

Cases cited for the legal proposition you have searched for.

Judgments 12263

...or a licensee, would not be an infringement of a copyright . The transfer of ownership can be by an assignment to another of the copyright either wholly or partially, either generally or w...a breach of trust or confidence.”“18. Assignment of copyright .-- (1) The owner of the copyright in an existing work or the prospective owner of the copyright in a...:Provided that in the case of the assignment of copyright in any future work, the assignment shall take effect only when the work comes into existence...

.... Intellectual Property — Copyright Act, 1957 — Ss. 18 and 30 — Distinction between assignment of copyright of a work and licence to use the work — Held, in the assignment , normally, ...filed in 2006. However, it is clarified that with effect from 21-6-2012, in view of the insertion of sub-section (10) to Section 19 of the Copyright Act, the assignment of the copyright in the work...the work is transferred, but in the case of licence, another person is allowed to use the work by the author — Words and Phrases — “ Assignment ”, “licence”(Para 18)...

...requisite locus standi and cause of action.10. Section 18 of the Copyright Act, 1957 confers ownership rights in a copyright on the assignee. The term ‘ assignment ’ is not defined. T...issue on which learned counsel for the parties have concentrated at this stage is: whether there was an assignment of copyright to the plaintiffs by the defendant No. 1, the author? The deed of assignment ...legally and simultaneously with the signing of the letter by the parties. In any case the letter had the effect of creating an ‘equitable assignment ’ in favour of the plaintiffs providing them with the...

...cannot claim their ownership of copyright in that manuscript. Manuscript is the best proof of ownership of copyright .10. Deciding the question of ...Additional District Judge observed that there is no dispute that the defendants have not claimed any assignment of the ownership of copyright . Their claim is that the copyright vests in them, and ...book was written and translated for the employer by the employee during employment. None of the modes have been claimed for assignment of the ownership of copyright which have been prescribed unde...

...parties with regard to the nature the extent of assignment is required to be ascertained from the agreement itself. If upon proper construction of the agreement it means that the assignment is for a limited period ...owner of the copyright in the sound recordings as also the exclusive owner of the original plates from which sound recordings could be duplicated.11. The object of retaining ownership ...agreements covers the entire period and is not limited.22. On behalf of the petitioner it was submitted that the assignment of copyright is different from any other assignment as the...

...words when one gives a copyright assignment , he parts with his copyright and he does not own his copyright any more and the other party does, unlike a copyright licence where the licensor retains ...: through a licence or an assignment . In an assignment of copyright rights, the owner sells his or her ownership rights to another party and has no control over how the third party uses those rights. A...with it. A valid assignment of copyright must be in writing and signed by, or on behalf of , the copyright owner/assignor. The subject of the assignment mus...

...parties are free to agree that the employer may have the copyright . It is important to remember that this ‘agreement to the contrary’ is distinct from ‘ assignment of copyright ’. Section 17, which provides for such ...plausible. On a balance of probabilities, at this prima facie stage, it cannot be said with any certainty that the Plaintiffs have made out a case of copyright ownership , so as to claim an injunction...implied. Thus, even if the work be created in the course of an undoubted contract of service, the author may reserve the copyright unto himself. Conversely, even if there be no contract of service, the...

...the copyright by an assignment . Sri Kailash Nath Bhargava clearly stated that the deed of assignment was the basis of R. Saigal's ownership of the copyright and he would not have... copyright but for that deed of assignment . Again, he stated that the contents of paragraph 2 as originally written in the plaint were correct and it is wrong that Sri Prem Chand never held any...work and novel Nirmala and after his death the copyright vested in the defendants 1 and 2, his heirs and legal representatives; there was no assignment of the copyright by Sri Prem, Chand; the story...

... copyright in an existing work may assign to any person such copyright either wholly or partially or subject to any limitation. Reading Sections 17 and 18 together, one who claims any copyright of a literary work by...provisions of the Copyright Act, 1957, without any written assignment by Thanthai Periyar himself in favour of the...themselves have admitted that the ownership of the compilations were that of the appellant and therefore, the right of the appellant as copyright owner stood established. It was therefore contended that the...

...been using the broadcasting songs in respect whereof Super Cassettes Industries Limited (SCIL) had an ownership over the copyright . It was a member of the copyright society being Phonographic....(ii) The ownership of any copyright like ownership of any other property must be considered having regard to the principles contained in Article 19(1)(g) read with Article 300-A of the...work is shorter in any other country than that under the Act (Section 6);(c) To settle disputes arising in respect of assignment of copyright (Section 19-A...

...provisions of the Copyright Act, 1957, an existing and future right of music . . . composer, lyricist is capable of assignment and whether the produc...to the provisions of the Act, the copyright in the case of a cinematograph film vests in the owner of the film as defined in Section 2(d)(v) of the Act; and that in the premises any assignment ...that in the circumstances of the present case, assignment , if any, of the copyright in any future work is of no effect”. Dissatisfied with this decision, the IPRS has, as already stated, come up in...

...amendment in the written statement to the effect that the ownership of the plaintiffs in the copyright is disputed. 2. In the application, it is explained that the occasion of filing ... ownership claimed by the plaintiff on the basis of the Assignment Agreements, on the ground that the Assignment Agreements are not enforceable in law. 3. In support of the... ownership of the plaintiffs in the copyright to any jeopardy, but only seek to withdraw the unequivocal admission regarding the plaintiffs' being the copyright owners of the subject work. The amendment is...

...infringement of a copyright . The transfer of ownership can be by an assignment to another of the copyright either wholly or partially, either generally or with special limitations and eit...recognises the assignment of a copyright . Section 19 prescribes the mode of assignment of a copyright . Section 30 then speaks of licenses by owners of copyright . It is to be noticed that section 30 does no...absolutely, either by assignment under section 18 of the Act or otherwise. The owner can also grant an exclusive license to another to exploit the Copyright . In terms of Section 30 of the Act, he can...

.... 12825/2009 and I.A No. 13030/200947. In order to decide the interim applications, the present discussion can be categorized into the following two heads:(i) Ownership of the plaintiff in the ...stipulations to which ownership of copyright is subject are Section(s) 18, 19 and 20 relating to assignment , transmission or devolution of title and other provisions of the Act. Section 17 also co...to say that prima facie, doubt can be expressed over the ownership of copyright as claimed by the plaintiff, be it from the standpoint of the contract of employment or contract for employment. I shall now ...

...ICSAC v. Aditya Pandey reported in (2017) 11 SCC 437, brings out the distinction between copyright of a wo...with the ownership still vesting with the owner/licensor. Section 30-A of the Act then goes on to state that the mode and manner specified for assignment of a copyright under Section 19, shall, with...authorised agent of various copyright holders. The plaintiff has entered into various assignment agreements with the owners of sound recordings and acquired rights, including the rights for on-ground public...

... Appellant in the Suits filed is that it is the "owner" of the copyright of the sound recordings by way of assignment vide the documents supra...determination of this Deed by the Music Label, and PPL accepts such assignment . This Deed is an assignment of rights u/s 18 and 19 of Copyright Act. It is clarified that th...30A of the Act were taken up together for discussion wherein it was observed that the Appellant was to have produced ownership documents. That, Annexure B a Deed of Partial and Limited Assignment of...

...respect of the copyright , patent etc. does not extend to the outright purchase of the right to use an asset. A payment for the absolute assignment and ownership of rights transferred is not a payment...or licenced for a limited term or for the whole of the copyright term. Licences can be exclusive or non-exclusive. An assignment is in essence a transfer of ownership even if it is partial; on the...no right to assign or sub-licence his interest. If the licence is not exclusive, the licensor can licence the same right to others also. Since registration of assignment is not compulsory the assignee has no means of knowin...

... Appellant in the Suits filed is that it is the "owner" of the copyright of the sound recordings by way of assignment vide the documents supra...by the Music Label, and PPL accepts such assignment . This Deed is an assignment of rights u/s 18 and 19 of Copyright Act. It is clarified that the rights exclusively assigned hereby...30A of the Act were taken up together for discussion wherein it was observed that the Appellant was to have produced ownership documents. That, Annexure B a Deed of Partial and Limited Assignment of...

... assignment creates an interest of ownership in favour of the assignee, whereas, a license merely permits a licensee to do something which but for the licence would amount to violation of the owner's rights...the author in the agreement; if it was only a licence. According to him, section 18 of the Act recognises the owner's right to assign copyright either wholly or partially. In his submission, an...nothing but a mere licence to publish books in favour of late Shri R.J Deshmukh. It was not an assignment of a copyright . While developing this submission the learned Counsel for the respondents would...

...distinct from ' assignment of copyright '. Section 17, which provides for such agreement to the contrary, deals with the question of the first ownership of the copyright . Section 18, on the...prima facie stage, it cannot be said with any certainty that the Plaintiffs have made out a case of copyright ownership , so as to claim an injunction. I am most certainly of the view that this...himself. Conversely, even if there be no contract of service, the parties are free to agree that the employer may have the copyright . It is important to remember that this 'agreement to the contrary' is...

Keyword Alert(s)

Create alert, update courts.

Supreme Court & High Court

Overruled By

Our algorithms sense that you may get better results by trying out the same excerpt in our CaseIQ interface.

MyLawman Team
Our Partners
Testimonials
Int Session Testimonials

Submt your Post Through Email
Our Journal
Opportunities
_Call for Papers
_Legal Jobs
_Internships
_Certificate Courses
_Fellowships
_Scholarships
_Conferences & Seminars
_Publication Opportunities
_Online Opportunities
_Moot Court Comp's
_Quiz Competitons
_Legal Competitions
_Summer Schools
_Call for Blogs
_Legal Article
_Case Briefs
_Legal Resources
_Know Your Rights Series
_Know Your Law Series
_Expert Corner Series
_Guest Posts
_Company Law
_Constitutional Law
_Consumer Protection Law
_Criminal Law
_Criminology
_Competition Law
_Family Law
_Indian Contract Act
_Jurisprudence
_Labour Law
_Legal Research & Methodology
_Muslim Law
_International Trade Law
_Legal Updates
_Exam Updates
_E- Library

MyLawman Events

_Courses & Events
_Interactive Sessions
MyLawman Publications
Submit Post
_Advisory Board
_Our Core Team
_Our Partners
_Our Supporters
Career @ MyLawman

Follow us on Social Media!

[law notes] indian copyrights act, 1957 with case laws| ipr by anubha mathur.

INTRODUCTION

Copyright is a bundle of exclusive rights given by the law to the creators of original works. It is a form of intellectual property protection granted by law. The rights provided under Copyright law include the rights of reproduction of the work, communication of the work to the public, adaptation of the work and translation of the work.

Copyright laws serve to create property rights for certain kinds of intellectual property, generally called works of authorship. Copyright laws protect the legal rights of the creator of an ‘original work’ by preventing others from reproducing the work in any other way.

The main goals of copyright are: -

To encourage the development of culture, science and innovation
To provide a financial benefit to copyright holders for their works
To facilitate access to knowledge and entertainment for the public.

Copyright provides a framework for relationships between the different players in the content industries, as well as for relationships between rights holders and the consumers of content. Copyright is a form of Intellectual Property, along with trademarks and patents in all countries, and other creations (such as trade secrets, database rights, rights of publicity and the like) that may vary from country to country.

BRIEF INTRODUCTION TO RELATED INTERNATIONAL TREATIES AND CONVENTIONS

Indian copyright law is at parity with the international standards as contained in TRIPS. The (Indian) Copyright Act, 1957, pursuant to the amendments in 1999, 2002, and 2012, fully reflects the Berne Convention for Protection of Literary and Artistic Works, 1886, and the Universal Copyrights Convention, to which India is a party. India is also a party to the Geneva Convention for the Protection of Rights of Producers of Phonograms and is an active member of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).

International copyright treaties

Several international treaties encourage reasonably coherent protection of copyright from country to country. They set minimum standards of protection which each signatory country then implements within the bounds of its own copyright law.

Berne Convention, 1886

Berne convention was the first and oldest multilateral convention on copyright that was for the protection of literary and artistic work which was adopted in 1886.

Initially, 10 nations were part of this convention and today 152 nations out of 190 are part of it. This convention made a union for the protection of the rights of the authors in their literary and artistic work.

The Berne Convention provides that, at a minimum, copyright protection in all signatory countries should extend to “literary and artistic works”, including “every production in the literary, scientific and artistic domain, whatever may be the mode or form of its expression.”

The Berne Convention contributed some major concerns to the copyright laws: -

The work originating in one signatory nation of the Berne Convention to be protected in the same manner in other nations too.

The automatic protection was granted to the author’s work and was not subjected to any registration deposition fees or any formal notice in connection with the publication. This means that the copyright exists as soon as the work is “FIXED” i.e. recorded in any form.

If any dispute arises in the nation of origin, then the dispute can be filed in either of both nations.

It described the types of works protected, duration of protection, scope of exceptions and Limitations of copyright.

Principles such as “national treatment” (works originating in one signatory country are given the same protection in the other signatory countries as each grants to works of its own nationals)

Principles such as “ automatic protection ” (copyright inheres automatically in a qualifying work upon its fixation in a tangible medium and without any required prior formality).

WIPO Copyright Treaty

The WIPO Copyright Treaty (WCT) is a special agreement under the Berne Convention that deals with the protection of works and the rights of their authors in the digital environment. In addition to the rights recognized by the Berne Convention, they are granted certain economic rights. The Treaty also deals with two subject matters to be protected by copyright:

Computer programs, whatever the mode or form of their expression; and

Compilations of data or other material ("databases").

The treaty was signed in 1996 and also recognizes that the transmission of works over the Internet and similar networks is an exclusive right within the scope of copyright, originally held by the creator.

It categorizes as copyright infringement both: -

The circumvention of technological protection measures attached to works
The removal from a work of embedded rights management information.

The Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS)

The Agreement on Trade Related Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPs) is comprehensive in giving cover to all areas of technology, property, patents, trademarks, copyrights and so on.

The TRIPs encourages upon the member country’s sovereign right to frame its own legislation on intellectual property matters. This clause has been included on account of persistent demand from developed and industrialized countries.

The TRIPs Agreement covers seven categories of intellectual property rights:

Geographical Indications
Industrial Designs
Integrated Circuits
Trade Secrets

It was signed in 1996 and administered by the world trade organization. This agreement includes a number of provisions related to the enforcement of Intellectual Property rights. It says that national laws have to make the effective enforcement of Intellectual Property rights possible , and describes in detail how enforcement should be addressed.

INDIAN COPYRIGHTS ACT, 1957

Copyright law protects expressions of ideas rather than the ideas themselves. It protects original works of ownership. It gives an exclusive right to do or authorize others to do certain acts in relation to literary, dramatic, musical, and artistic works, cinematography, and sound recordings. Computer programs are also included in literary works. Authors of Computer programs, and broadcasting organizations are to be given the right to authorize or prohibit the commercial rental of their works to the public. These similar exclusive rights also apply to the films.

The Copyright Act, 1957, along with the Copyright Rules, 1958 , is the governing law for copyright protection in India. After independence, the Indian Copyright Act was the first law which was enacted from the provisions of the Berne Convention.

Objectives:

The Indian Copyright Act, 1957 is enacted with the following two main objectives:

Encouragement to the Original Work:

The main objective of the Copyright Act is to encourage authors, composers, artists, and designers to create original works by rewarding them with the exclusive right for a limited period (usually for the life of the originator plus 50 years) to exploit the work for monetary gain.

The economic exploitation is done by licensing such exclusive rights to the entrepreneurs like publishers, film producers and record manufacturers for monetary consideration. In reality, people who economically exploit the copyright are the greater beneficiaries of the copyright law than the creators of works of copyright. The publishers and authors of books are such examples.

Protection to the Originator:

The objective of copyright law is also, in essence, to protect the author or the creator of the original work from the unauthorized reproduction or exploitation of his/her materials. The right also extends to prevent others from exercising without authority any other form of right attached to copyright, for example, in the case of literary work, the right of translation, adaptation or abridgment.

In recent times, with the rapid advance of technology, copyright infringement in the form of ‘piracy’ has become a serious problem of an international character. This is because technological progress has made the reproduction of copyrighted material easy and cheap.

Accordingly, Indian copyright owners can protect their copyright in almost any country in the world. The appropriate actions taken under the Copyright Act 1957 can stop the infringement of copyright. Infringement of copyright is also an offense punishable with imprisonment and fine.

DEVELOPMENT OF COPYRIGHT LAWS IN INDIA

The Indian Copyright law was developed in 3 phases:

Early Phase: - In 1911, the earliest statutory law on copyright was made under the administration of British rule. The provisions of the Berne convention were followed. During that phase, the term of copyright was for the lifetime of the author plus 7 years after his death and the government could grant a compulsory license to publish a book. The registration was also made necessary in 1914.

Modern Phase: - Copyright Act of 1911 was again amended in 1914 and it was also called modern copyright legislation. For the very first time criminal sanction was introduced in act for infringement of copyright. The term of the copyright was fixed for 10 years from the date of its first publication. This act remained applicable until replaced by Copyright Act, 1957.

1957 Phase: - The Act was enacted after the independence of the nation from British rule. It was the first enactment of intellectual property laws. It came into force on 21 st January 1958. Major provisions of act were adopted by the Berne convention of protection of literary and artistic work, 1886.

This act is amended 6 times till now to align with rapid changes in society and provisions of international treaties i.e. Berne Convention, UCC, TRIPs Agreement.

SUBJECT MATTER OF COPYRIGHT, ECONOMICS AND MORAL RIGHTS

Modern copyright laws serve to protect a variety of intellectual property ranging from songs and jingles to computer software and proprietary databases. All subject matters protected by copyright are called ‘works’. Thus according to Section 13 of The Copyright Act 1957, it may be subjected to the following works:

Clause (a) of this Section 13 provides the definition of original work whereas clause (b) and (c) provides secondary works.

Primary Works

Original Literary Work,

Original Dramatic work,

Original Musical work,

Original Artistic Work,

Secondary Works

Cinematography films, and

Sound recordings.

Section 2(o) of the Copyright Act, 1957 provides an inclusive definition of word literary works according to which the literary work includes computer programming, tablets, and compilations including computer database. These cover published works including books, articles, journals, and periodicals, as well as manuscripts. Even adaptations, translations, and abridgements are taken as original works and are protected under copyright law. Section 13(a) classify literary works in the primary work.

Case: Zee Telefilms v. Sundial Communications

Facts: A had prepared concept notes for the purpose of television film which consists of characters, plots, notes and sketches etc.

Issues: Whether A is entitled to the copyright of those concept notes?

Held: Yes, since A invests labour and skill in preparing the concept paper. Such a person is entitled to copyright.

Case: Macmillan & Co. v. K.J Cooper

Facts: Plaintiff’s book consisted of selected passages from Plutarch’s life of Alexander the Great, joined together by a few words to give a different appearance. The book also contained an introduction and notes useful for education. A similar book was published by the defendants with notes. The original work contained 40,000 words while the defendants had copied 20,000 words and 7000 words in notes.

Issue: Whether the defendants work infringed the copyright in the plaintiff’s works?

Held: Defendants work infringed the copyright

Original Dramatic Works:

According to section 2(h) of the Copyright Act, 1957, the dramatic work includes any piece for recitation, choreographic work or entertainment in dumb shows, the scenic arrangement or acting form which is fixed in writing or otherwise but does not include a cinematographic film. Since the definition is an inclusive one, the other things fall within the general meaning of dramatic work, and may also be covered by the definition.

Case: Academy of General Education Manipal v. Malini Mallya

The court shows a clear difference between literary and dramatic work. The difference between the two rests on the fact that literary work allows itself to be read while a dramatic work “forms the text upon which the performance of the plays rests.” A dance performance will not be covered under copyright work but under dramatic work.

Case: Creation Records v. New Group Newspaper

Held: It was held that a photograph that involves no movement or action cannot be treated as dramatic work. Copyright of Dramatic work can in form of:

Adaption of Dramatic work:- Adaptation work means the modification of that work in some other form.

Original Musical Works:

According to section 2(p) of the Copyright Act, 1957, musical work means any work consisting of music and includes any graphical notion of such work, but does not include any words or any action intended to be sung, spoken or performed with the music. The words in a song and the music have separate rights and the rights cannot be merged. In order to qualify for copyright protection, a musical work must be original.

Example:- Famous song “Yaaram” which is written by Gulzar and composed by Vishal Bharadwaj. The copyright of the lyrics will belong to Gulzar and the musical composition will be of the composer Vishal Bharadwaj.

Original Artistic Works:

According to the section 2(c) of the Copyright Act, 1957, the artistic work includes any painting, sculpture, drawing, engraving photograph of any work possessing artistic qualities. However, it also includes the architecture and artistic craftsmanship of such works.

Case: Associated publishers vs Bashyam

Facts: A portrait of Mahatma Gandhi was made based on two photographs.

Held: A portrait based on photographs will be entitled to copyright if it produced a result from the photograph and the portrait itself is original.

Example: A photographer took a photograph of a painting of MF Hussain, then paints the same himself and sells such copies painted by him.

Held: A copyright in a painting is infringed when a person copies from the original painting or a picture of painting.

Cinematographic Films

Section 2(f) of the Copyright Act, 1957 defines cinematographic films which include any work of visual recording and a sound recording accompanying such visual recording and the expression cinematograph shall be construed as including any work produced by any process analogous to cinematographic including video films. It is classified into secondary works as suggested in clause (b) of section 13 of the act.

Case: R.G. Anand vs Delux Films

Facts: Plaintiff was a producer and play writer of play ‘Hum Hindustani’. The plaintiff tried to consider the possibility of filming and narrated the play to the defendant. The defendant, without informing the plaintiff, made the picture ‘New Delhi’ which was alleged to be based on the said play.

Issue: Whether the film ‘New Delhi’ was an infringement of the plaintiff’s copyright in play ‘Hum Hindustani’?

Held: No, because the stories were different, only the theme “love story” was same.

Case: Balwinder Singh vs Delhi Administration

Held: The concept of cinematograph is not only limited to movies being played in theater it also covers videos and television, they both fall under the preview of cinematograph film.

Level of Originality:

A television report or documentary may be based upon a live incident or a newspaper report, thus the act does not prescribe any specified level of originality in the cinematographic film.

Sound Recordings:

According to section 2(xx) of The Copyright Act, 1957 , sound recording suggests that a recording of sounds from which that sound may be produced regardless of the medium on which such recording is made or the method by which the sounds are produced. Clause (c) of section 13 of the act state sound recordings as a by-product works.

Case: Gramophone Co. India v. Super Cassette Industries

Facts: ‘G.co’, Plaintiff, produced audio records titled ‘Hum Aapke Hain Kaun’ by Rajashree production ltd, who were the owners of cinematographic work. They had already sold 55 lakhs audio cassettes and 40,000 compact discs titled ‘Hum Aapke Hain Kaun’. The defendants too launched an audio cassette by adopting the same title with its design, color scheme, get up and layout deceptively similar. Permanent Injunction was sought.

Held: Injunction varied by stipulating not to use the same title, design colour scheme etc with bold letters the record is a version of different artists.

RIGHTS OF THE COPYRIGHT HOLDER

In the Copyright Act, 1957, the owner possesses the rights which are to prevent others from using his works in certain ways and to claim compensation for the usurpation of that right. In this Act, there are two types of rights given to the owner:

Economical rights;
Moral rights.

Economic rights

This right is also known as the Exclusive Rights of the copyright holder provided under Section 14 of the Act. In this Act different types of work come with different types of rights. Such as:

In the case of original literary, musical, and dramatic work:

Right to reproduce;
Right to issue copies;
Right to perform at public;
Right to make cinematography and sound recording;
Right to make any translation;
Right to adaptation; and
Right to do any other activities related to the translation or adaptation.

In the case, of computer program work:

Right to do any act aforesaid mentioned; and
Right to sell, rent, offer for sale of the copyrighted work.

In the case of artistic work:

Right to communicate;
Right to make any cinematography and sound recording;
Right to make an adaptation; and
Right to do any other activities related to the translation or adaptation.

In case of a cinematograph film work:

Right to sell, rent, offer for sale of the copyrighted work; and
Right to communicate.

In the case of a sound recording work:

Right to issue copies; and

Moral rights

In addition to the protection of economic rights, the Copyright Act, 1957 conjointly protects ethical rights, that is due to the actual fact that a literary or inventive work reflects the temperament of the creator, just as much as the economic rights reflect the author’s need to keep the body and the soul of his work out from commercial exploitation and infringement. These rights are supported by Article 6 of the Berne Convention of 1886, formally referred to as a world convention for the protection of literary and inventive works, whose core provision relies on the principle of national treatment, i.e. treats the opposite good as one’s own.

Section 57 of The Copyright Act, of 1957 recognizes two types of moral rights which are:

Right to paternity – which incorporates the right to assert the authorship of the work, and the right to forestall others from claiming authorship of his work; and
Right to integrity- which incorporates the right to restrain, or claim damages in respect of any distortion, modification, mutilation, or any other act relating to the said work if such distortion, multiplication, or alternative act would be prejudiced to claimant honor or name.

AUTHORSHIP AND OWNERSHIP IN COPYRIGHT

Section 17 of this Act recognizes the author as the first owner, which states that subject to the provision of this Act, the author of a work shall be the first owner of the copyright therein:

In the case of literary or dramatic composition, the author,
In the case of musical work, the musician,
In the case of creative work apart from photography, the artist,
In the case of photographic work, the artist,
In the case of cinematographic or recording work, the producer,
In case of any work generated by any computer virus, the one who created it.

However, this provision provided to bound exception:

In case of creation is made by the author underemployment of the proprietor of any newspaper, magazine or any periodic, the said proprietor,
In the case where a photograph is taken, painting or portrait is drawn, a cinematograph is made for the valuable consideration of any person, such person,
In case of work done in the course of the author’s employment under the contract of service, such employer,
In case of address or speech delivered on behalf of another person in public, such person,
In the case of government works, the government,
In the case of work done under the direction and control of public undertaking such public undertaking, such and
In the case of work done in which the provision of Section 41 apply, concerned international organizations.

ASSIGNMENT OF COPYRIGHT

The owner of the copyright can generate wealth not only by exploiting it but also by sharing it with others for mutual benefit. This can be done by the way of assignment and licensing of copyright.

Only the owner of the copyright has the right to assign his existing or future copyrighted work either wholly or partly and as a result of such assignment the assignee becomes entitled to all the rights related to copyright to the assigned work, and he shall be treated as the owner of the copyright in respect of those rights.

Mode of the assignment agreement

As per Section 19 , these conditions are necessary for a valid assignment:

It should be in writing and signed;
It should specify the kinds of rights assigned and the duration or territorial extent; and
It should specify the amount of royalty payable if required in any case.

It is also provided that, if the period is not mentioned in the agreement it will be considered as five years and if the territorial extent is not stipulated in the agreement, it will be considered as applicable to the whole of India.

Disputes related to the assignment of copyright

According to the Copyright Act, 1957, the appellant board where the receipt of the complaint by the assignor and after holding necessary inquiry finds that the assignee has failed to make the exercise of the rights assigned to him, and such failure is attributed to any act or omission of the assignor, may by suitable order, revoke such assignment. However, if the dispute arises with respect to the assignment of any copyright then that appellate board may also order the recovery of any royalty payable.

Operation of law in assignment

According to The Copyright Act, 1957, where under a bequest a person is entitled to the manuscript of any literary, dramatic or any other kind of work and such work has not been published before the death of the testator, unless the contrary is proved such person shall be treated as the owner for such work.

INFRINGEMENT AND REMEDIES

Where a person intentionally or unintentionally infringes the rights of the copyright holder, the holder may be subject to the following remedies available under this Act.

Civil remedies

These remedies are given under Section 55 of the Copyright Act, 1957 which are:

Interlocutory injunction

This is the most important remedy against the copyright infringement, it means a judicial process by which one who is threatening to invade or has invaded the legal or equitable rights of another is restrained from commencing or continuing such act, or is commanded to restore matters to the position in which they stood previous to the relation. Thus for granting the interlocutory injunction, the following three factors are considered as necessary:

Prima facie case , an assumption of the court that the plaintiff can succeed in the case and become eligible for relief.
Balance of convenience , in it the court will determine which parties suffer the greater harm, this determination can vary with the facts of each case.
Irreparable injury, it is difficult to decide and determine on a case by case basis. Some examples of it include- loss of goodwill or irrevocable damages to reputation, loss of market share.

Mareva injunction

This is a particular form of the interlocutory injunction which restrains the defendant from disposing of assets that may be required to satisfy the plaintiff’s claim or for removing them from the jurisdiction of the Court.

Anton Piller order

This order is passed to take into possession the infringed documents, copies and other relevant material of the defendant, by the solicitor of the plaintiff. This order is named after the famous case of Anton Piller KG v/s Manufacturing Process Ltd, 1976 . In this case, the plaintiff Antone Piller, the German manufacturer is successful in passing ex-parte awards of restraining the use of his copyrighted products against the defendant.

John Deo’s order

In this order, the Court has the power to injunct rather than those impeded in the suit, who may be found violating the rights in the field of copyright. Thus this order is issued against the unknown person, who has allegedly committed some wrong, but whose identities cannot entertain the plaintiff.

Pecuniary remedies

There are three types of pecuniary remedies provided:

An account of profit, which lets the owner seek the sum of money made, equal to the profit made through unlawful conduct.

Compensatory damages, which let the copyright owner seek the damages he suffered.

Conversational damages, which are assessed to the value of the article.

Criminal remedies

For infringement of copyright, the criminal remedies provided under Section 63 :

Imprisonment, not less than 6 months which may extend up to 3 years;

Fine may not be less than 50,000 which may extend up to 2,00,000;

Search and seizure of copyrighted goods; and

Delivery of copyrighted goods to the copyrighted owner.

In the case of repeat offenders, the minimum punishment terms of 1 year and a fine of 1 lakh however, the highest punishment will be the same as the first-time offender.

This act shall not constitute copyright infringement in cases of:

Fair Dealing

Fair dealing is the statutory limitation on the exclusive right of the copyright owner which permits the reproduction or use of copyrighted work in a manner that otherwise would have constituted infringement. This law is given under Section 52 of the Copyright Act, 1957 according to which the free uses can be made for any work except computer programs for the purposes:

For private and personal use including research,
For criticism and review,
For reporting of current events or issues including lectures in public,
For broadcasting in cinematographic films or by posting photographs,
For reproduction and reporting of any judicial proceeding,
For reproduction, or publication of any kind of work prepared by the secretariat of a legislature,
For reproduction of any kind of work in a certified copy made or supplied accordance with any law,
For reading and recitation of any literary or dramatic work in the public domain,
For publication of any non-copyright matter bona fide intended for the use of educational institutes, and
For recording any sound by the owner of the right in the work.

INTERNATIONAL COPYRIGHT ORDERS

Chapter IX of the Indian Copyright Act, 1957 describes the provisions of international copyright. Section 40 states the powers to extend copyright to foreign works and section 42 governs the provisions as to works of certain international organizations.

The power to extend copyright to foreign works is as follows -

The Central Government may, by order published in the Official Gazette, direct that all or any provisions of this Act, shall apply.

(a) To publish work first within the territory of India and then outside

(b) To unpublished works, the authors whereof were at the time of the making of the work, subjects or citizens of a foreign country to which the order relates, in like manner as if the authors were citizens of India.

(c) In respect of domicile in any territory outside India to which the order relates in like manner as if such domicile were in India

(d) To any work of which the author was at the date of the first publication thereof, or, in the case where the author was dead at the date, was at the time of his death, a subject or citizens of a foreign country to which the order relates in like manner as if the author was a citizen of India at that date or time.

According to section 42 of the act, it provides power to restrict rights in works of foreign authors first published in India – If it appears to the Central Government that a foreign country does not give or has not undertaken to give adequate protection to the works of Indian authors, the Central Government may, by order published in the Official Gazette, direct that such of the provisions of this Act as confer copyright on works first published after the date specified in the order, the authors whereof are subjects or citizens of a such foreign country and are not domiciled in India, and thereupon those provisions shall not apply to such works.

ISSUES IN DIGITAL COPYRIGHTS

Digital Right Management includes techniques which have been developed to control duplication, modification and distribution of original works. The authors or the creators of the original works contend that DRM techniques are necessary in order to protect their interest by preventing free and unauthorized copying and distribution of their work.

However there are few who support the view that DRM techniques pose unnecessary hurdles for the public and impede the way of innovation and creativity by not letting others from being motivated by the original work of others.

PROVISIONS UNDER INDIAN COPYRIGHT LAW

Many techniques have been developed to protect the original work like digital watermarking, access and copy controls etc. However, despite the fact that these techniques have been incorporated in the legislation, regulation and protection of original works in the digital environment remains a goal that is yet to be achieved. It is very important that ideas should be available to the general public so that the flow of creativity must not be blocked. However, creators and authors must always be incentivized for their efforts. Hence the interest of both must be kept in mind while enacting and implementing DRM techniques.

Strengthening of Border Measures

Section 53, dealing with the importation of infringing copies, has been substituted with a new section providing detailed border measures to strengthen the enforcement of rights by making provisions to control the import of infringing copies by the Customs Department, disposal of infringing copies and presumption of authorship under civil remedies.

Protection of Technological Measures

The new section 65A, introduced for protection of technological protection measures (TPM) used by a copyright owner to protect his rights on the work, makes circumvention of it a criminal offense punishable with imprisonment.

As a result, any person who circumvents an effective technological measure applied for the protection of any of the rights, with the intention of infringing such rights, shall be punishable with imprisonment, which may extend to two years, and shall also be liable to fine. The rationale is to prevent the possibility of high-rate infringement (digital piracy) in digital media.

This amendment also clarifies the problem of circumvention impacting the public interest on access to work facilitated by copyright laws. Sub-section (2) permits circumvention for specified uses.

Digital Rights Management Information

Section 65B has been introduced to provide protection of rights management information, which has been defined under clause (xa) of section 2.

This amendment is intended to prevent the removal of the rights management information without authority and distributing any work, fixed performance or phonogram, after removal of rights management information. As a result, any unauthorized and intentional removal or alteration of any rights management information is a criminal offence punishable with imprisonment, which may extend to two years and fine. The rationale of the protection emanates from the practice in the digital world of managing the rights through online contracts governing the terms and conditions of use.

The protection of technological measures and rights management information were introduced in WCT and WPPT as effective measures to prevent the infringement of copyright in digital environments. The introduction of Sections 65A and 65B is expected to help the film, music and publishing industry in fighting piracy.

About the Author: This Law Notes is prepared by Ms. Anubha Mathur, law student at Amity University, Noida and was an intern at MyLawman. She can be reached at [email protected].

MyLawman is now on Telegram (t.me/mylawman) Follow us for regular legal updates. Follow us on Google News, Instagram, LinkedIn , Facebook & Twitter or join our whats app group .You can also subscribe for our Newsletter for Email Updates.

For More Law Notes on IPR, Click Here

Submit your post by Email here | Join our Team here.

You may like these posts, post a comment, get privacy enabled whatsapp updates.

To Stay Updated about the Posts of MyLawman: Legal Updates on the go, Join our Social Media Pages

Like us on FB

Follow us on Instagram

UGC NET Crash Course, Coming Soon!!!

Join our New Follow cult. Get new posts by email:

We love to hear, Write to us

Menu footer widget.

Submission Guidelines
Publication Policy
Privacy Policy

Study record managers: refer to the Data Element Definitions if submitting registration or results information.

Search for terms

Advanced Search
See Studies by Topic
See Studies on Map
How to Search
How to Use Search Results
How to Find Results of Studies
How to Read a Study Record

Learn About Studies
Other Sites About Studies
Glossary of Common Site Terms

Submit Studies to ClinicalTrials.gov PRS
Why Should I Register and Submit Results?
FDAAA 801 and the Final Rule
How to Apply for a PRS Account
How to Register Your Study
How to Edit Your Study Record
How to Submit Your Results
Frequently Asked Questions
Support Materials
Training Materials

Selected Publications
Clinical Alerts and Advisories
Trends, Charts, and Maps
Downloading Content for Analysis

ClinicalTrials.gov Background
About the Results Database
History, Policies, and Laws
ClinicalTrials.gov Modernization
Media/Press Resources
Linking to This Site
Terms and Conditions
Search Results
Study Record Detail

An Open Comparative Study of the Effectiveness and Incomparable Study of the Immunogenicity and Safety of the Vaccine (CoviVac) for Adults Aged 60 Years and Older

Study Details
Tabular View
No Results Posted

Inclusion Criteria:

Volunteers must meet the following inclusion criteria:

Type of participants

• Healthy volunteers or volunteers with a history of stable diseases that do not meet any of the criteria for non-inclusion in the study.

Other inclusion criteria

Written informed consent of volunteers to participate in a clinical trial
Volunteers who are able to fulfill the Protocol requirements (i.e., fill out a self-observation Diary, come to control visits).

Exclusion Criteria:

SARS-CoV-2 infection • A case of established COVID-19 disease confirmed by PCR and/or ELISA in the last 6 months.

Diseases or medical conditions

Serious post-vaccination reaction (temperature above 40 C, hyperemia or edema more than 8 cm in diameter) or complication (collapse or shock-like condition that developed within 48 hours after vaccination; convulsions, accompanied or not accompanied by a feverish state) to any previous vaccination.
Burdened allergic history (anaphylactic shock, Quincke's edema, polymorphic exudative eczema, serum sickness in the anamnesis, hypersensitivity or allergic reactions to the introduction of any vaccines in the anamnesis, known allergic reactions to vaccine components, etc.).
Guillain-Barre syndrome (acute polyradiculitis) in the anamnesis.
The axillary temperature at the time of vaccination is more than 37.0 ° C.
Acute infectious diseases (recovery earlier than 4 weeks before vaccination) according to anamnesis.
Donation of blood or plasma (in the amount of 450 ml or more) less than 2 months before inclusion in the study.
Severe and/or uncontrolled diseases of the cardiovascular, bronchopulmonary, neuroendocrine systems, gastrointestinal tract, liver, kidneys, hematopoietic, immune systems.
Is registered at the dispensary for tuberculosis, leukemia, oncological diseases, autoimmune diseases.
Any confirmed or suspected immunosuppressive or immunodeficiency condition in the anamnesis.
Splenectomy in the anamnesis.
Neutropenia (decrease in the absolute number of neutrophils less than 1000/mm3), agranulocytosis, significant blood loss, severe anemia (hemoglobin less than 80 g/l) according to anamnesis.
Anorexia according to anamnesis.

Prior or concomitant therapy

Vaccination with any vaccine carried out within 30 days before vaccination / the first dose of the studied vaccine or planned administration within 30 days after vaccination / the last dose of the studied vaccine.
Prior vaccination with an experimental or registered vaccine that may affect the interpretation of the study data (any coronavirus or SARS vaccines).
Long-term use (more than 14 days) of immunosuppressants or other immunomodulatory drugs (immunoregulatory peptides, cytokines, interferons, immune system effector proteins (immunoglobulins), interferon inducers (cycloferon) during the six months preceding the study, according to anamnesis.
Treatment with systemic glucocorticosteroids (≥ 20 mg of prednisone, or an analog, for more than 15 days during the last month).
Volunteers who received immunoglobulin preparations or blood transfusion during the last 3 months prior to the start of the study according to anamnesis.

Other non-inclusion criteria

• Participation in any other clinical trial within the last 3 months.

Exclusion criteria:

Withdrawal of Informed consent by a volunteer;
The volunteer was included in violation of the inclusion/non-inclusion criteria of the Protocol;
Any condition of a volunteer that requires, in the reasoned opinion of a medical researcher, the withdrawal of a volunteer from the study;
Taking unauthorized medications (see section 6.2);
The volunteer refuses to cooperate or is undisciplined (for example, failure to attend a scheduled visit without warning the researcher and/or loss of communication with the volunteer), or dropped out of observation;
For administrative reasons (termination of the study by the Sponsor or regulatory authorities), as well as in case of gross violations of the Protocol that may affect the results of the study.
For Patients and Families
For Researchers
For Study Record Managers
Customer Support
Accessibility
Viewers and Players
Freedom of Information Act
HHS Vulnerability Disclosure
U.S. National Library of Medicine
U.S. National Institutes of Health
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

Spatial Variations of the Activity of 137 Cs and the Contents of Heavy Metals and Petroleum Products in the Polluted Soils of the City of Elektrostal

DEGRADATION, REHABILITATION, AND CONSERVATION OF SOILS
Open access
Published: 15 June 2022
Volume 55 , pages 840–848, ( 2022 )

Cite this article

You have full access to this open access article

D. N. Lipatov 1 ,
V. A. Varachenkov 1 ,
D. V. Manakhov 1 ,
M. M. Karpukhin 1 &
S. V. Mamikhin 1

1451 Accesses

2 Citations

Explore all metrics

The levels of specific activity of 137 Cs and the contents of mobile forms (1 M ammonium acetate extraction) of heavy metals (Zn, Cu, Ni, Co, Cr, Pb) and petroleum products were studied in the upper soil horizon of urban landscapes of the city of Elektrostal under conditions of local radioactive and chemical contamination were studied. In the soils within a short radius (0–100 m) around the heavy engineering plant, the specific activity of 137 Cs and the contents of mobile forms of Pb, Cu, and Zn were increased. The lognormal distribution law of 137 Cs was found in the upper (0–10 cm) soil layer; five years after the radiation accident, the specific activity of 137 Cs varied from 6 to 4238 Bq/kg. The coefficients of variation increased with an increase in the degree of soil contamination in the following sequence: Co < Ni < petroleum products < Cr < 137 Cs < Zn < Pb < Cu ranging from 50 to 435%. Statistically significant direct correlation was found between the specific activity of 137 Cs and the contents of mobile forms of Pb, Cu, and Zn in the upper horizon of urban soils, and this fact indicated the spatial conjugacy of local spots of radioactive and polymetallic contamination in the studied area. It was shown that the specific activity of 137 Cs, as well as the content of heavy metals and petroleum products in the upper layer (0–10 cm) of the soils disturbed in the course of decontamination, earthwork and reclamation is reduced.

Geographical Features of Pollution of the Territory of Yakutia With Cesium-137

P. I. Sobakin, A. P. Chevychelov & Ya. R. Gerasimov

Activity Concentration of Natural Radionuclides and Total Heavy Metals Content in Soils of Urban Agglomeration

Avoid common mistakes on your manuscript.

INTRODUCTION

Contaminants migrate and accumulate in urban ecosystems under the impact of both natural and technogenic factors. The processes of technogenic migration of 137 Cs are most pronounced in radioactively contaminated territories. It was found in urboecological studies that the intensity of sedimentation of aerosol particles containing radionuclides and heavy metals is determined by the types of the surfaces of roofs, walls, roads, lawns, and parks and by their position within the urban wind field [ 12 , 26 ]. Traffic in the cities results in significant transport of dust and associated contaminants and radionuclides [ 15 , 24 ]. During decontamination measures in the areas of Chernobyl radioactive trace, not only the decrease in the level of contamination but also the possibility of secondary radioactive contamination because of the transportation of contaminated soil particles by wind or water, or anthropogenic transfer of transferring of ground were observed [ 5 , 6 ]. Rainstorm runoff and hydrological transport of dissolved and colloidal forms of 137 Cs can result in the accumulation of this radionuclide in meso- and microdepressions, where sedimentation takes place [ 10 , 16 ]. Different spatial distribution patterns of 137 Cs in soils of particular urban landscapes were found in the city of Ozersk near the nuclear fuel cycle works [ 17 ]. Natural character of 137 Cs migration in soils of Moscow forest-parks and a decrease in its specific activity in industrial areas have been revealed [ 10 ]. Determination of the mean level and parameters of spatial variations of 137 Cs in soils is one of primary tasks of radioecological monitoring of cities, including both unpolluted (background) and contaminated territories.

Emissions and discharges from numerous sources of contamination can cause the accumulation of a wide range of toxicants in urban soils: heavy metals (HMs), oil products (OPs), polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), and other chemical substances. Soil contamination by several groups of toxicants is often observed in urban landscapes [ 20 , 23 ] because of the common contamination source or close pathways of the migration of different contaminants. A comprehensive analysis of contamination of urban soils by radionuclides and heavy metals has been performed in some studies [ 21 , 25 ]. The determination of possible spatial interrelationships between radioactive and chemical contaminations in urban soils is an important problem in urban ecology.

A radiation accident took place in the Elektrostal heavy engineering works (EHEW) in April 2013: a capacious source of 137 Cs entered the smelt furnace, and emission of radioactive aerosols from the aerating duct into the urban environment took place. The activity of molten source was estimated at about 1000–7000 Ci [ 14 ]. The area of contamination in the territory of the plant reached 7500 m 2 . However, radioactive aerosols affected a much larger area around the EHEW, including Krasnaya and Pervomaiskaya streets, and reached Lenin Prospect.

Geochemical evaluation of contamination of the upper soil horizon in the city of Elektrostal was carried out in 1989–1991. This survey indicated the anomalies of concentrations of wolfram, nickel, molybdenum, chromium, and other heavy metals related to accumulation of alloying constituent and impurities of non-ferrous metals in the emissions of steelmaking works [ 19 ].

The aim of our work was to determine the levels of specific activity of 137 Cs, concentrations of mobile forms of heavy metals (Zn, Cu, Ni, Co, Cr, and Pb) and oil products in the upper soil horizons in different urban landscapes of the city of Elektrostal under the conditions of local radioactive and chemical contamination.

Author information

Authors and affiliations.

Lomonosov Moscow State University, 119991, Moscow, Russia

D. N. Lipatov, V. A. Varachenkov, D. V. Manakhov, M. M. Karpukhin & S. V. Mamikhin

You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to D. N. Lipatov .

Ethics declarations

The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest.

Additional information

Translated by T. Chicheva

Rights and permissions

Open Access. This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license, and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article’s Creative Commons license, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article’s Creative Commons license and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ .

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Lipatov, D.N., Varachenkov, V.A., Manakhov, D.V. et al. Spatial Variations of the Activity of 137 Cs and the Contents of Heavy Metals and Petroleum Products in the Polluted Soils of the City of Elektrostal. Eurasian Soil Sc. 55 , 840–848 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1134/S1064229322060072

Download citation

Received : 21 October 2021

Revised : 22 December 2021

Accepted : 30 December 2021

Published : 15 June 2022

Issue Date : June 2022

DOI : https://doi.org/10.1134/S1064229322060072

Share this article

Anyone you share the following link with will be able to read this content:

Sorry, a shareable link is not currently available for this article.

Provided by the Springer Nature SharedIt content-sharing initiative

urban soils
urban ecosystems
radiation monitoring
decontamination
Urban Technosols
Find a journal
Publish with us
Track your research

Trump declines to endorse a national abortion ban

WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR) — Former president Donald Trump said abortion access should be left up to the states on Monday.

“Whatever they decide must be the law of the land,” Trump said.

But Trump stopped short of calling for a national abortion ban, something many Republicans have pushed for.

“You must follow your heart, or in many cases, your religion,” Trump said.

Trump has said he supports exceptions in cases of rape, incest and to protect the life of the mother.

The Biden- Harris campaign was quick to seize on the moment.

“We believe in a woman’s decision and ability to make a decision,” Vice President Kamala Harris said.

Harris slammed Trump for saying he was proudly responsible for the overturning of Roe v. Wade.

“If he were to be put back in a position where he could sign off on a law, he would sign off on a national abortion ban,” Harris said.

Democrats believe the fight over abortion rights will help them at the polls in November.

“Been on the minds of voters ever since Roe fell, as we saw in the elections in Virginia and Ohio and Kansas, and we will see this November,” Rep. Jennifer McClellan (D-Va.) said.

McClellan said Trump is out of touch on this issue.

“He is starting to see that the chaos that he wrought by putting judges in place that overturned Roe is not popular with the American people,” McClellan said.

Republicans, including Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), are calling on the former president to go further on his abortion stance.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX 5 San Diego & KUSI News.

Trump declines to endorse a national abortion ban

IMAGES

Copyright Assignment and Licensing
Copyright Assignment Agreement
Assignment of Copyright (Short Form)
Free Copyright Assignment Agreement
Case Law
COPYRIGHT LAW

VIDEO

3A Video Assignment 3 Limit Laws
Case Laws Presentation
case laws for Business law CA Foundation course
All Case Laws of Casemat will be available soon
Case laws for doctrine of Eclipse
Lalu, Jherome A. BSCpE-4A CPE Laws Assignment Cybercrime Law of The Philippines

COMMENTS

Assignment of Copyrights & Legal Implications
Assignments can be used for many different purposes, such as security for debt, as an asset passed to heirs, or as part of the distribution of assets after a bankruptcy proceeding. Once you assign your rights to somebody else, however, you are permanently giving away your right to control the work. That means if you try to exercise any of the ...
List of copyright case law
Hawkes & Son (London) Ltd v. Paramount Film Service Ltd [1934] 1 Ch 593 (the Colonel Bogey case - infringement of copyright occurs when "a substantial, a vital and an essential part" of a work is copied, per Lord Slesser) Jennings v. Stephens [1936] Ch. 469 ("performance in public" as infringement) Donahue v.
The Copyright Act: Standing and "Right to Sue" Assignments
Thus, an exclusive right must be exclusive. An assignment is not exclusive if some form of right to limited use and distribution to other third parties is reserved. In the copyright world, the "substance and effect" of any written assignment must reflect a true, even if temporary, transfer of complete ownership of a copyright interest.
Case: Copyrights/Jurisdiction (C.D. Cal.)
The court granted ProQuest LLC's motion to dismiss for lack of personal jurisdiction an individual's copyright infringement action, based on her academic thesis, which she described as a work of art, because it lacks general and specific jurisdiction over ProQuest. Mercan v. ProQuest LLC, 2024 BL 118010, C.D. Cal., 2:23- cv-08817-AB-MAA, 4 ...
Understanding an assignment of copyright agreement
While you can't get your copyright back for many years after your assignment unless the new owner consents otherwise, current copyright law allows you to terminate your copyright assignment after 35 years.
Assignment/Transfer of Copyright Ownership
Are copyrights transferable? Yes. Like any other property, all or part of the rights in a work may be transferred by the owner to another. See Circular 1, Copyright ...
Copyright transfer, assignment and licensing in the United States
However, the written transfer does not need to be made at the time of assignment, and a later written document confirming the agreement is sufficient to prove the assignment. Transfer of a right ...
PDF IP Licenses: Restrictions on Assignment and Change of Control
inventors these rights under the federal copyright and patent laws. ... In re Trade-mark Cases, 100 U.S. 82, 93-95 State law generally governs the assignability of contracts. However, (1879)). Unlike ... modern courts have held that federal common law governs the assignment of IP licenses (see, for example, Cincom Sys., Inc. v. Novelis Corp., ...
Chapter 2. Copyright Ownership and Transfer
— In the case of any work other than a work made for hire, the exclusive or nonexclusive grant of a transfer or license of copyright or of any right under a copyright, executed by the author on or after January 1, 1978, otherwise than by will, is subject to termination under the following conditions:
Copyright law of the United States
The copyright law of the United States grants monopoly protection for "original works of authorship". With the stated purpose to promote art and culture, copyright law assigns a set of exclusive rights to authors: to make and sell copies of their works, to create derivative works, and to perform or display their works publicly. These exclusive ...
What Is Assignment and Licensing under Copyright Law?
With a license, the copyright owner retains their ownership of any right that is transferred. An assignment, on the other hand, transfers all exclusive rights and is comparable to a sale. The original copyright owner basically sells their rights to another person or entity who then essentially owns them. When an owner assigns their rights to ...
A Comprehensive Analysis on Assignment of Copyright
An assignment is, in essence, a transfer of ownership, even if it is partial. The copyright owner in an existing work or the future owner of the copyright in a further work may assign to any person the copyright either wholly or partially, either generally or subject to limitation, either for the whole of copyright or any part thereof.
Assignment of Copyright
The term "copyright assignment" describes the transfer of ownership or rights in a work that has been granted copyright from the original copyright holder (the "assignor") to a different party (the "assignee"). Through a legal procedure, the assignor gives up their ownership of the work and gives the assignee the only authority to ...
Assignment and Licensing of Copyrights under Copyrights Act
An assignment transfers an interest in and deals with copyright itself as provided under section 14 of the Act, but license does not convey the copyright but only grants a right to do something, which in absence of license would be unlawful. An assignment transfers title in copyright, a license merely permits certain things to be done by ...
What is the concept of Assignment of Copyright?
Thus, law provides a right to the owner of the copyright (i.e. the creator) to transfer the ownership of the copyright to a third party. For instance, in the case of making a complete movie - all the creative persons with their idea turned into relevant works come to a producer, assign their rights that subsist in their work in return for a ...
Assignment, Transmission, And Relinquishment Of Copyright : An Overview
It was seen in the case of Saregama India Ltd. vs. Suresh Jindal (2007), that if an assignment has been made for a limited period in line with the agreement, then, one cannot contend on the basis of the assignment of copyright rendering absolute ownership for an unlimited period.
Top Cases of Copyright Law in 2019
The court also noted that Pillai has a prima facie case against the respondent and his legal rights would not exhaust to claim authorship over it. Therefore the Court took a balanced view: All arrangements for the release are made by the producer, postponement of the same may cause huge damage to Kunnapalli.
Analysing copyright infringement cases and laws in India
Where a condition has been imposed in the licencing agreement stipulating that certain work shall not be communicated to the public beyond the allowed jurisdiction, violating such condition shall be considered copyright infringement; Reproduction of the work of the copyright holder without express permission;
'Top Gun' Copyright Lawsuit: Court Dismisses Case Against Paramount
Paramount has prevailed in a copyright lawsuit brought by the heirs to the author of a 1983 magazine story that inspired the original Top Gun accusing the studio of forging ahead with the ...
assignment+of+copyright+ownership
Assignment of copyright .--. (1) The owner of the copyright in an existing work or the prospective owner of the ...:Provided that in the case of the assignment of copyright in any future work, the assignment shall take effect only when the work comes into existence... P.N Krishna Murthy v. Co-Operative For American Relief Everywhere And Others. 3.
[Law Notes] Indian Copyrights Act, 1957 with Case Laws| IPR by Anubha
Case: Macmillan & Co. v. K.J Cooper. Facts: Plaintiff's book consisted of selected passages from Plutarch's life of Alexander the Great, joined together by a few words to give a different appearance. The book also contained an introduction and notes useful for education. A similar book was published by the defendants with notes.
Paramount prevails in copyright case by heirs of original 'Top Gun
LOS ANGELES (CN) — A federal judge ruled against the widow and son of the author of the original 1983 "Top Guns" magazine article, who claimed Paramount Pictures' 2022 "Top Gun: Maverick" sequel infringed on their copyright to the story. U.S. District Judge Perry Anderson in Los Angeles granted Paramount Pictures' request for summary judgment ...
No Pseudonymity for Porn Copyright Infringement Defendants, Says One Judge
Doe (D.N.J. 2022) ("[I]t certainly cannot be the case that anonymity is warranted for every defendant sued by Plaintiff simply because Plaintiff's copyrighted works are adult films, legal in all ...
The concept of 'internal judicial independence' in the case law of the
Footnote 95 He was, however, charged with the assignment of cases to judges, but - as the Court noted - Croatian law 'contained rules governing the distribution of cases to judges within courts, which means that cases were not distributed by the court presidents at their own discretion'. The Court, therefore, concluded that Croatian law ...
Double-blind, Placebo-controlled, Randomized Study of the Tolerability
A case of established COVID-19 disease confirmed by PCR and/or ELISA in the last 6 months. History of contacts with confirmed or suspected cases of SARS-CoV-2 infection within 14 days prior to vaccination. Positive IgM or IgG to SARS-CoV-2 detected on Screening. Positive PCR test for SARS-CoV-2 at Screening / before vaccination.
An Open Comparative Study of the Effectiveness and Incomparable Study
Parallel Assignment: Masking: Single (Participant) Primary Purpose: Prevention: Official Title: An Open Comprative Study of the Prophylactic Efficacy and a Non-comparative Study of the Immunogenicity and Safety of the Inactivated Whole-virion Concentrated Purified Coronavirus Vaccine (CoviVac) for Adults Aged 60 Years and Older: Actual Study ...
Spatial Variations of the Activity of 137Cs and the Contents of Heavy
Abstract The levels of specific activity of 137Cs and the contents of mobile forms (1 M ammonium acetate extraction) of heavy metals (Zn, Cu, Ni, Co, Cr, Pb) and petroleum products were studied in the upper soil horizon of urban landscapes of the city of Elektrostal under conditions of local radioactive and chemical contamination were studied. In the soils within a short radius (0-100 m ...
Trump declines to endorse a national abortion ban
Trump has said he supports exceptions in cases of rape, incest and to protect the life of the mother. ... "If he were to be put back in a position where he could sign off on a law, he would sign ...

Assignment of Copyrights & Legal Implications

How Is Copyright Assigned?

Marquette University Law School Faculty Blog

The Copyright Act: Standing and “Right to Sue” Assignments

You Might Also Like

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Case: Copyrights/Jurisdiction (C.D. Cal.)

Learn more about Bloomberg Law or Log In to keep reading:

Already a subscriber?

Understanding an assignment of copyright agreement

Assignment of copyright

Published By Stanford Copyright and Fair Use Center

Chapter 2 Endnotes

Copyright Licensing and Assignment

What Is Copyright Licensing?

What Happens if I Transfer My Exclusive Rights to Another Person?

Need a Copyright Lawyer in your Area?

Related Articles

Discover the Trustworthy LegalMatch Advantage

How does LegalMatch work?

Assignment of Copyright – Explained With Modes and Disputes

Assignment of Copyright

Mode of Assignment of Copyright

Disputes With Respect to the Assignment of Copyright

How to Start Studying Law – For New, Existing, and Old Students

How to Study and Prepare for Judiciary Exams (13 tips)

11 Tips to Pass AIBE With Bare Acts and MCQ Tests in 2024

How to Write the Best Answer in Judiciary Mains Exam

10 Legal Jobs and Career Options After Law in 2024

Best Books for Judiciary Exam Preparation in 2024

Assignment and Licensing of Copyrights under Copyrights Act

Introduction

Assignment of Copyrights : Section 18 of Copyrights Act

Mode of Assignment: Section 18 of Copyrights Act

Licensing of Copyright

Voluntary license: : Section 18 of Copyrights Act

Compulsory Licenses

Statutory Licenses

You might like

Audi Alteram Partem in Administrative Law

Appointment and Removal of Directors in Companies Act 2013

Advantages and Disadvantages of Alternative Dispute Resolution

The IPThink-Tank

Assignment, Transmission, And Relinquishment Of Copyright : An Overview

Recent Posts

Comentários

The Definitive Voice of Entertainment News

site categories

Winston Cho

Related Stories

THR Newsletters

More from The Hollywood Reporter

SUGGESTIONS

Keyword Alert(s)

Overruled By

MyLawman Events

Follow us on Social Media!

INTRODUCTION

BRIEF INTRODUCTION TO RELATED INTERNATIONAL TREATIES AND CONVENTIONS

International copyright treaties

INDIAN COPYRIGHTS ACT, 1957

DEVELOPMENT OF COPYRIGHT LAWS IN INDIA

SUBJECT MATTER OF COPYRIGHT, ECONOMICS AND MORAL RIGHTS

RIGHTS OF THE COPYRIGHT HOLDER

Economic rights

In the case of original literary, musical, and dramatic work:

In the case, of computer program work:

In the case of artistic work:

In case of a cinematograph film work:

Moral rights

AUTHORSHIP AND OWNERSHIP IN COPYRIGHT

ASSIGNMENT OF COPYRIGHT

Mode of the assignment agreement

Disputes related to the assignment of copyright

Operation of law in assignment

INFRINGEMENT AND REMEDIES

Civil remedies

Interlocutory injunction

Mareva injunction

Anton Piller order