Celebrating 20 Years of IP Excellence

The featured image is the photograph of singer S.P. Balasubramaniam. To read this post of the Ilayaraja and SPB copyright case, click here.

Ilayaraja v. S.P. Balasubramanyam

  Ilayaraja's copyright notice to S.P. Balasubramanyam asking the singer to pay royalties for performance of his musical compositions in USA has provoked debates, arguments and discussions on various fronts. To the question, does S.P Balasubramanyam need a license to perform his own works (songs he sang and recorded for films)? ; The answer is a simple and straight forward – Yes! S.P Balasubramanyam has to take two licenses for each song he wishes to perform - one for the lyrics,…

Read more

censorship burkah

Film Expression and Censorship in India: Udta Punjab and Lipstick under my Burkah (Part 3)

Continued from Part 2, read part 2 by clicking here. Select Censorship Cases Religion, Women, Drugs, Decency, public order, Sovereignty and Integrity, all form the basis for CBFC's decision with respect to Udta Punjab, Had Anhad and Lipstick under the Burkah films. The disputes and controversies around the said films reflect the subjectivity inherent in CBFC's assessment and judgment. The fact that the Courts reversed all excisions made by the CBFC in two of the cases leads one to conclude that…

Read more

The featured image reads "The worst thing about censorship is (the text after this line is blocked with a black tape". This image very aptly indicates censorship. To read more click here.

Film Expression and Censorship in India: An Introduction (Part 1)

  Expression in the form of films is unique and special in many ways. Films merge life-like moving pictures, sounds, and other effects to tell a story, or send a message unlike any other form of expression. When the film is shown to a captive audience in a closed, dark environment, with the aid of advanced technology, its impact is heightened substantially. It is believed that one does not experience the same euphoria, emotion and engagement if the same film is…

Read more

The featured image shows a green school board on which the following words appear to be written by chalk. The words read "Copyrights, Media & Entertainment Law news : Weekly updates". To get your weekly updates and news on IP, click here.

Copyright Infringement, Entertainment tax, Beauty and the Beast, Swarovski, Copyright tips and more

Copyright Infringement, Entertainment tax, Beauty and the Beast, Swarovski, Copyright tips and more, presented by the Media & entertainment law attorneys and experts of BananaIP Counsels, India’s Premier New Age IP Firm. Quote of the Week "Kill Piracy; Save Creativity." - Pirates of Bollywood, Dr. Kalyan C. Kankanala, Renowned IP Attorney, Author and Professor. Recent entertainment case laws MSOs and local cable operators liable to collect and pay entertainment tax to the government. Responding to the pleas filed by multi-system operators (MSOs) and…

Read more

The featured image shows a green school board on which the following words appear to be written by chalk. The words read "Copyrights, Media & Entertainment Law news : Weekly updates". To get your weekly updates and news on IP, click here.

Rangoon movie, Facebook Licensing, DC Super Hero Girls, Special 301 and more

This weekly update on Copyrights, Media and Entertainment Law is brought to you by the Entertainment Law experts of BananaIP (BIP) Counsels. Thought of the Week "Of all the creative work produced by humans anywhere, a tiny fraction has continuing commercial value. For that tiny fraction, the copyright is a crucially important legal device." - Lawrence Lessig Copyright Infringement Case updates Kangana and Rangoon team land in murky waters of copyright infringement Film production company Nadia Movietone Pvt Ltd. has filed a copyright…

Read more

The featured image shows a green school board on which the following words appear to be written by chalk. The words read "Copyrights, Media & Entertainment Law news : Weekly updates". To get your weekly updates and news on IP, click here.

Hrithik, Beyonce, Infringement, Bombay High Court

  This weekly update on Copyrights, Media and Entertainment Law is brought to you by the Entertainment Law experts of BananaIP (BIP) Counsels. Thought of the Week: “Only one thing is impossible for God: To find any sense in any copyright law on the planet” - Mark Twain Copyright Cases Bhaktivedanta Book Trust (BBT) sues Thomson Press The Bombay High Court has recently granted a stay order in response to an injunction suit brought about by the Bhaktivedanta Book Trust (BBT),…

Read more

The featured image reads 'all rights reserved'. This post talks about the Entertainment Law and Copyrights involved in Royalty Rights in Sound Recordings, Lyrics & Musical Works. To read more, please click here.

Royalty Rights in Sound Recordings, Lyrics & Musical Works – Part 1

  Quick bite: Dear readers, the following post is brought to you by the Media and Entertainment law experts of BananaIP (BIP)Counsels. This post is the first in its series and promises to engage your grey matter. This post will essentially help you understand the Entertainment Law and Copyrights surrounding Royalty Rights in Sound Recordings, Lyrical & Musical Works. Colloquially used word music/song is more than melody or harmony reduced to print, writing or graphic form[1]. Music is a language with a…

Read more

The featured image shows the word copyright written over a grey background. The post summarises the case The Indian SingersRights Association v. Chapter 25 Bar and Restaurant. To know more, please click here.

Indian Performing Right Society v. Aditya Pandey & Ors.

Facts IPRS (Indian Performing Right Society) has its grievance against the broadcasters of Private FM Radio Channels and Event Organizers for paying royalties to only the owners in copyright of the sound recording but not to the authors of the lyrical or musical scores. The Single bench of the Delhi High Court Justice S.Ravindra Bhat ruled in favor of the radio broadcasting channels and IPRS then appealed to the Supreme Court, which delivered its judgement in September.  Question of Law The question…

Read more

The featured image shows the word copyright written in blue colour on a white background. The post is about latest entertainment and copyright news. To know more, please click here.

Dish Tv India faces Copyright infringement suit

  Hello Readers!! There has been a lot that has been brewing over the past few weeks with respect to Trademarks. We have decided to recapitulate the trademark news which have recently hit the headlines in our segment, Weekly Trends. Let us take a quick look at what happened in the past weeks, with this weekly update.   Dish Tv India restrained from operating in Middle East and North Africa As you may or may not know Dish TV India Ltd.was…

Read more

The featured image shows a picture of the actor Hrithik Roshan. The post is about the recent copyright infringement action initiated against the film 'Mohenjo Daro'. To know more, please click here.

Mohenjo Daro triumphs infringement battle

Another film met the fate of being brought before the court in the 11th hour for plagiarism. The film Mohenjo Daro, directed by Ashutosh Gowarikar is scheduled for release on 12th August 2016. The movie was brought before the Bombay High Court with a claim that it was a product of plagiarism. But the film triumphed its first ever legal battle. The Plaintiff, Mr. Akshayaditya Harishchandra Lama ("Lama") claimed that the 1st Defendant, Mr. Ashutosh Gowarikar directed film Mohenjo Daro…

Read more