Creativity being the keystone of progress, no civilized society can afford to ignore the basic requirement of encouraging the same. Economic and social development of a society is dependent on creativity. 

Copyright is the set of exclusive rights granted to the author or creator of an original work, including the right to copy, distribute and adapt the work. Copyright ensures certain minimum safeguards of the rights of authors over their creations, thereby protecting and rewarding creativity. 

The Copyright Act, 1957 provides copyright protection in India. It confers copyright protection in the following two forms: 

• Economic rights of the author, and 
• Moral Rights of the author. 

It is not mandatory to register the work to claim copyright and it begins the moment the work is created. However, it is advisable to register the business for better protection, and it will serve as evidence in any dispute. Section 13 of the Copyright Act 1957 states that copyright can only be granted to an original work. Copyright is usually provided for 60 years 

Infringement of Copyright- 

The creator has sole authority either to sell his work or to license it to the third party who can make use of his work but if someone duplicates or reproduces the work of the copyright holder without the his permission, then this can lead to copyright infringement, in which the owner can take legal action against the infringer. The acts involving a ‘fair use’ of the Work, do not amount to infringement. However, the ambit of ‘fair use’ is a debatable issue and the Courts have decided it depending on the facts and circumstances of each case. 

Some of the commonly known acts involving infringement of copyright:  

• Making infringing copies for sale or hire or selling or letting them for hire;  
• Permitting any place for the performance of works in public where such performance constitutes infringement of copyright;  
• Distributing infringing copies for the purpose of trade or to such an extent so as to affect prejudicially the interest of the owner of copyright;  
• Public exhibition of infringing copies by way of trade; and Importation of infringing copies into India. 

Remedies for Infringement of Copyright- 

• Civil remedy- Section 55(1) of the copyright act, provides that the copyright holder is entitled to remedy by way of injunction. It further provides that the copyright holder is entitled to damages for copyright infringement.  
• Criminal remedy- The copyright holder can take criminal proceedings against the infringer. Section 63 of the Copyright Act, states that copyright infringement is a criminal offence.  

Copyright infringement can be broadly classified into two categories: 

• Primary Infringement 

• Secondary Infringement 

The primary infringement, the infringer copies the original work without the owner’s authorization, whereas secondary infringement covers unauthorized dealings such as selling of infringing copies of the Work, etc. 

Rights of Copyright owners are- 

• Right to Reproduction 
• Right to distribute 

• Right to make derivative works  
• Right to publicly perform 
• Right of Paternity 

The purpose of copyright is to protect the rights of the owners of original work and provide economic benefits to them for their creativity and diligence. The scope of copyright extends to the literary or artistic works which demands creativity including Database and computer software. Moreover, The existing laws should be amended as per the requirements of the situation. 

Aishwarya Says:

I have always been against Glorifying Over Work and therefore, in the year 2021, I have decided to launch this campaign “Balancing Life”and talk about this wrong practice, that we have been following since last few years. I will be talking to and interviewing around 1 lakh people in the coming 2021 and publish their interview regarding their opinion on glamourising Over Work.

If you are interested in participating in the same, do let me know.

Do follow me on Facebook, Twitter  Youtube and Instagram.

The copyright of this Article belongs exclusively to Ms. Aishwarya Sandeep. Reproduction of the same, without permission will amount to Copyright Infringement. Appropriate Legal Action under the Indian Laws will be taken.

If you would also like to contribute to my website, then do share your articles or poems at adv.aishwaryasandeep@gmail.com

We also have a Facebook Group Restarter Moms for Mothers or Women who would like to rejoin their careers post a career break or women who are enterpreneurs.