Lawmatters.in

Actors and the Proposed Copyright Amendment

Nandita Saikia — Sat, 04 Sep 2010 11:51:53 +0000

The Copyright (Amendment) Bill, 2010, proposes to amend the Copyright Act so as to clarify the definition of “performers” and their rights. The definition of a “performer” in Section 2(qq) is an inclusive definition which states that a performer “includes an actor, singer, musician, dancer, acrobat, juggler, conjurer, snake charmer, a person delivering a lecture [...]

Copyright Societies and the Copyright (Amendment) Bill, 2010

Nandita Saikia — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 18:43:24 +0000

The Copyright (Amendment) Bill, 2010, aims to completely restructure the working of and the eligibility criteria for membership in copyright societies by various amendments to Chapter VII of the Copyright Act, 1957, which would make it possible for only authors of works to become members of copyright societies and to manage them. This is intended [...]

Attribution of Licences under the Proposed Copyright Amendment

Nandita Saikia — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 10:12:55 +0000

(This post has been revised on Spetember 3, 2010, based on comments from Pranesh Prakash.) It has been proposed to amend Section 30 of the Copyright Act, 1957, so as to delete the word “signed” from it. If amended in this fashion, the primary part of the Section would state: “The owner of the copyright in [...]

Delhi High Court takes up the “No Cashless Facility” Health Insurance Issue

Law Matters — Sat, 31 Jul 2010 02:37:32 +0000

One might conclude that if one bought a health insurance policy, and paid a higher premium in order to avail of the “cashless facility”, the said “cashless facility” would actually be made available to one. Such a conclusion, however, apparently proved to be erroneous in a number of cases, including one involving a cancer patient. [...]

OSP / ISP Liability and the Copyright (Amendment) Bill

Nandita Saikia — Thu, 01 Jul 2010 11:10:24 +0000

(This post is a rough draft; comments would be appreciated. — Nandita Saikia saikianandita@gmail.com) The Copyright Amendment Bill attempts to create a safe harbour for Internet Service Providers (ISPs) and Online Service Providers (OSPs) in Indian copyright law through amendments to Sections 52(1)(b) and 52(1)(c) of the Indian Copyright Act, 1957 (which would effectively be [...]

Spinoffs and Sequels

Law Matters — Thu, 01 Jul 2010 09:38:47 +0000

It looks like Michael Douglas and his ex-wife Diandre are set to debate the difference between these two forms of derivative works — sequels and spinoffs — in Court. Under the terms of their divorce, Diandre is entitled to fifty per cent of income from spinoffs of movies in which Michael Douglas acted before their [...]

Privilege and Property. Essays on the History of Copyright.

Law Matters — Thu, 01 Jul 2010 04:52:05 +0000

“What can and can’t be copied is a matter of law, but also of aesthetics, culture, and economics.” According to its publisher, OpenBook Publishers, this book edited by Martin Kretschmer, with Lionel Bently and Ronan Deazley will trace the history of copyright law, and its emergence from a “a wide range of norms and practices” [...]