Quote
“Unfortunately, viewing pirated films online has always been a norm rather than an exception.” Dr. Kalyan C Kankanala
Copyright Statistics
There is an increase of 206% in the total number of copyright applications filed last week as compared to the previous week. A total of 447 applications were filed for copyright registration during the last week. The majority of applications were filed for literary works and artistic works.
| S. No | Type of Work | Number of Applications filed in the Previous Week (5th November 2018 to 11th November, 2018) |
Number of Applications filed in the Recent Week (12th November 2018 to 18th November, 2018) |
Change | Percentage Change |
| 1. | Literary Work | 87 | 265 | 178 | Increase of 205% |
| 2. | Musical Work | 1 | 5 | 4 | Increase of 400% |
| 3. | Artistic Work | 41 | 97 | 56 | Increase of 137% |
| 4. | Cinematograph Film | 0 | 5 | 5 | Increase |
| 5. | Sound Recording | 4 | 24 | 20 | Increase of 500% |
| 6. | Software | 13 | 51 | 38 | Increase of 292% |
| Total | 146 | 447 | 301 | Increase of 206% |
Indian Copyright News
BCCI Claims Match Footage on Facebook Infringes Copyright
Monica Shail from Chandigarh moved the District Court against Facebook for blocking her account because of a video that she posted of herself being focused on as a part of the crowd in a India v. Sri Lanka match on December 17th, 2017. The social networking site blocked her account while notifying her of the reasons for the action via mail. BCCI in a formal complaint to Facebook had asserted that the content that she posted was detrimental to their media rights in the footage. The matter is to be finalised with a reply from Facebook India and a hearing is scheduled for November 30.
T- Series Awarded Compensatory Damages of Rs. 40 lakhs
The Additional District Judge in a Delhi Court has awarded Super Cassettes Private Limited (known as T-Series) with a compensation of Rs 20 Lakhs each to be paid by Chhattisgarh’s Sun Cable Network and Rajasthan’s Brij Network, cable operators for unauthorised utilizing and broadcasting its works on their cable network such as “badrinath ki dulhaiyan” movie title track, “agar tum sath ho” song of the movie “Tamasha” etc. causing infringement of copyright of musical and audio-visual works belonging to T-Series. The Court also directed the operators to hand over all the audio and video tapes, copies and negatives, which infringed the copyright of T-Series along with adherence to a permanent injunction preventing further infringement.
International Copyright News
Music Labels Request Permanent Injunction Against PokerNews
PokerNews is a website that is run by the company iBus Media. The website runs podcasts which deals with topics that appeal to recreational poker players. The website PokerNews has allegedly been publishing unlicensed works through podcasts- amounting to copyright infringement, according to a group of music publishers which includes Universal Music and Capitol Records. This is not the first time that iBus Media has been at the receiving end of similar allegations as it has been accused of infringement, 3 years ago. Currently, the labels have laid out around 46 copyrighted songs of which PokerNews has made unauthorised use. The list consist of Kanye West’s ‘Touch the Sky’ and Nas ’I Can’. Universal Music Group has listed 253 podcasts consisting of infringing material and have requested for a preliminary and permanent injunction from using the copyrighted work along with damages.
YouTube Uses Pop-ups to Warn Users of EU Copyright Directive
After the buzz about the proposed EU Copyright Directive, YouTube has begun to educate all its users about the relevant portions of the proposed Directive by way of pop-ups within the site. Article 13 of the proposed Directive is of concern to sites like YouTube and Facebook, which are required to regulate the online content put up by users of the sites to reduce copyright infringement. This may lead to stringent policing of content by the sites. The Directive is to be voted upon in January 2019.
Licensing and Merchandising News
Discovery to Launch TV Everywhere Apps
After the acquisition of Scripps Network, a mass media company- Discovery Inc. has planned on further expansion by launching its networks as ‘TV Everywhere Apps’. Discovery now plans on a direct-to-consumer service. The networks to be included in the project are Travel Network, DIY Network, Cooking Channel, Food Network and HGTV among others. They are to be included with 12 existing Go Apps and adds around 22,000 titles to the platform. These apps are meant to enable easy access to day to day programs of Discovery on a user-friendly platform.
Xiaomi Corp Signs Global Licensing Deal with Meitu Inc
Meitu,Inc. a global innovator of mobile videography and photography announces that Xiaomi has taken over its phone hardware business. Meitu, Inc is known for phones that enable the best selfie experience. The USD 10 billion exclusive licensing deal grants Xiaomi the rights to infuse its phone making technology with Meitu’s photo editing specialities. Future phones shall carry the name of Mietu. These phones shall consist of the R&D of Xiaomi and the camera software of Mietu. Xiaomi is to share 10% of its gross profit earned in the first 5 years of the deal, after which it shall pay an amount of $10 billion, per year.
