“Right to Privacy and Entertainment Industry in India, Copyrights and terrorism- are they linked?, IPO Official gets 1 year rigorous imprisonment, Temporary Storage of Digital Content Permitted, Geronimo Stilton merchandise in India courtesy Bran Monk” and more is presented by the Copyright and Entertainment Law Attorneys and experts of BananaIP Counsels, India’s Premier New Age IP Firm
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COPYRIGHT QUOTE OF THE WEEK
“Privacy is the very essence of human existence. One wonders why the Indian Supreme Court took so long to reach that conclusion.”-Dr. Kalyan C. Kankanala, Renowned IP Attorney, Professor and Novelist.
INDIAN COPYRIGHTS AND ENTERTAINMENT LAW UPDATES
Right to Privacy and Entertainment Industry in India
With the Indian Supreme Court’s ruling that the Right to Privacy is a fundamental right guaranteed to all persons under Article 21 of the Indian Constitution, some dynamics of the entertainment industry are set to change. Some expected changes include:
- News Reporting about personal life of celebrities;
- Endorsement contract terms and scope of permissions under the contracts;
- Collection and protection of user data by online content providers such as Amazon, Netflix, Hot Star, Hungama, etc.;
- Blog publications about celebrities and follower/subscriber management;
- Analysis and use of celebrity, audience and consumer data;
- Tracking user viewing preferences, and related actions; and
- Intrusion into celebrity affairs.
BIP team will carry a comprehensive note in the coming days about specific practices of the entertainment industry that may be affected by the judgment.
Copyrights and terrorism- are they linked?
While announcing a special course on intellectual property rights for police officers, Home Minister, Rajnath Singh said that piracy and copyright violations are sources of terror financing and money laundering. “Apart from infringement of private rights, counterfeiting and piracy activities also give rise to serious organized crimes. Counterfeiting, piracy, and smuggling also finance criminals and terrorists who deal in counterfeit goods to launder illegal money” he said. Further, the Minister said that the government and the ministry give high importance to preventing IPR related crimes. “Police Officials shall be equipped with proper knowledge and training, so as to curb and restrain IPR violations at the very outset,” he said.
IPO Official gets 1-year rigorous imprisonment
N D Kasturi, former Deputy Registrar of Trade Marks, Chennai was sentenced to one-year rigorous imprisonment by a CBI court in a disproportionate assets case. Kasturi was accused of acquiring disproportionate assets of Rs 2.22 crores between April 2000 and March 2010. “She could not give any satisfactory explanation for the assets during the investigations” the Special Judge S Natarajan held.
INTERNATIONAL COPYRIGHT AND ENTERTAINMENT LAW NEWS
Temporary Storage of Digital Content Permitted
In a recent decision of the Australian Copyright Tribunal involving Phonographic Performance Company of Australia (PPCA) and Foxtel, the Tribunal held that temporary storage of content streamed online is permitted provided the same content has been broadcast on television as well. The said decision permits digital/internet streaming service providers to allow their consumers to store video and audio programs for subsequent enjoyment. The TVR and DVR exception has been recognized earlier, and the Tribunal pointed out that the storage exception is limited to one-time viewing.
LICENSING AND MERCHANDISING UPDATES
Kwan Entertainment and Dream Theatre form new JV
Celebrity management company Kwan Entertainment and Marketing Solutions and brand licensing firm Dream Theatre have joined hands to form a joint venture called Mojostar. The JV is aimed at creating new fashion, fitness and personal care brands in partnership with celebrities. In March Kwan Entertainment had launched Kwan Digital which brings together writers and content creators and digital platforms such as Netflix and Hotstar and is primarily engaged in licensing deals, content integration, selling digital rights of films, distribution, syndication and talent packaging of content for such digital platforms.
Geronimo Stilton merchandise in India courtesy Brand Monk
The Mumbai based licensing company Brand Monk Licensing has signed an exclusive deal with Atlantyca Entertainment, and shall be bringing Geronimo Stilton merchandise to India. Geronimo Stilton is a fictional mouse from a bestselling childrens’ book series. Co-founder of Brand Monk Licensing Mr. Rohit Sobti stated that the books are very popular in India and that Brank Monk will be conducting a large scale merchandising programme with the brand which will include merchandise from fashion, bags, collectables, board games to association with FMCG companies.
Success of Licensing Expo China, 2017
PRN carried news that the debut Licensing Expo in China was successful. The Expo saw the presence of several brands, characters and other licensing properties. Noteworthy participants included representatives from Hasbrow, Fanta, Mattel, BBC Earth, Lamborghini, Bud Wiser, etc.
BIP ENTERTAINMENT LAW TIP OF THE WEEK
Time to Modify Entertainment Contracts
With the Supreme Court’s decision on the Right to Privacy, Entertainment Companies must take steps to modify their artist agreements, endorsement contracts, licensing contracts, terms and conditions, privacy policies, and other legal instruments, and accommodate specific terms with respect to privacy that are in line with the judgment.
Author: BIP’s Copyright and Entertainment Law Attorneys
Senior Partner, the entertainment law attorneys at BIP are among the well-known lawyers in the field. They work with clients such as Yash Raj Films, Dharma Productions, Ananda Audio, Anushka Sharma, Sushant Singh, and Arka Media (Producer of Bahu Bali). BIP’s entertainment law team helps clients protect, manage and effectively license and merchandize their creative works such as films, music, brands and other content, to maximize financial returns.
The weekly copyright and entertainment law news initiative is a part of their pro bono work, and is aimed at spreading entertainment law awareness. You are free to share the news with appropriate attribution and backlink to the source.
If you have any questions, you may write to BIP’s Copyright and Entertainment Law Attorneys – contact@bananaip.com.
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