India Copyright Cases
152 decisions indexed
Page 2 of 6 · 152 total
Attachmate Corporation v.DCIT, International Taxation, Circle-1(1)(1)
The assessee, a US company dealing in software products, challenged the Assessing Officer's order which treated income received from Indian distributors as 'Royalty' chargeable under Article 12 of the India-USA DTAA. The Tribunal held that since no right in copyright was being transferred, the consideration could not be taxed as royalty.
M/s.24 Am Studious Private Limited v.Divya M.Jain
The plaintiff filed a suit seeking perpetual injunction against defendants for releasing the film 'Production No.5 (Colour) – Ayalan' without consent, alleging infringement of Tamil Satellite Television Rights in India. The dispute centered on the validity of the finance agreement where the plaintiff pledged the exclusive copyright to the first defendant.
M/s. New Rubric Solutions LLP v.Pearson India Education Services Private Limited
The plaintiff, M/s. New Rubric Solutions LLP, filed a suit alleging that the defendant, Pearson India Education Services Private Limited, infringed its intellectual property rights by using and misrepresenting the test results of its assessment product 'Kaleido' in the defendant's product 'MyPedia'. The court found in favor of the plaintiff.
Narendra Hirawat And Co. v.Sholay Media Entertainment Pvt. Ltd. & Anr.
The dispute arose from agreements between Narendra Hirawat And Co. (NHC) and Sholay Media Entertainment Pvt. Ltd. (SME) regarding film rights for 'Sholay' and 'Sholay 3D'. After a Deed of Settlement was executed, the core issue became non-compliance with payment terms by one party. NHC filed a commercial suit seeking declaration of exclusive license and injunction against termination notices issued by SME.
C.Prakash v.S.N. Media
C.Prakash appealed an order that vacated an initial injunction granted in his favour against S.N. Media. The dispute centered on whether C.Prakash's assignment of digital dubbing rights for films 'Chingari' and 'Shrikanta' was invalid because the first defendant claimed non-payment of consideration. The court held that copyright assignment does not require payment of consideration to be valid.
Uday Prakash v.Anand Pandit And Another
Uday Prakash appealed against the rejection of his application for a temporary injunction in a suit claiming infringement of his registered copyright ('Highway-39') by defendants who were producing a feature film titled 'Chehre'. The High Court found prima facie that there was no distinctive plagiarism, but directed the trial to be expedited and mandated an acknowledgment if the plaintiff succeeds.
Yennes Infotech (P) Ltd. v.The Managing Director, eNoah Solution Pvt. Ltd.
Yennes Infotech appealed an order rejecting its plaint, which sought permanent injunctions and damages for alleged copyright infringement related to customized Tally Software. The court upheld the rejection, finding that the first defendant acted as an authorized agent and the second defendant was a licensee with a valid right to use the software.
Goldmines Telefilms Pvt Ltd v.Achla Sabharwal
The dispute concerns the ownership of the copyright in the 1987 Hindi film 'Sheela' between Goldmines Telefilms Pvt Ltd and Achla Sabharwal. Both parties claim to be the true assignee of the rights from the original producer, Dwarakish. Goldmines sought an interim injunction preventing Sabharwal from exploiting or claiming ownership of the copyright.
Sony Music Entertainment India Pvt. Ltd v.S.Khaja Mohideen
The appeals arose out of common final interlocutory orders concerning two actions for copyright infringement. The first suit involved musical works in 17 films, while the second concerned music from the film 'Citizen'. The court addressed issues related to prima facie case and balance of convenience before granting interim relief.
Dr.S.Vijaya Bharati (Deceased) v.Mr.T.S.Ramalingam (Deceased)
The suit was filed by Dr.S.Vijaya Bharati (Deceased) against Mr.T.S.Ramalingam (Deceased) and others for infringement of copyright concerning the literary work "Amaran Kadhai". After nearly a decade, the parties entered into a compromise agreement.
R.Ravindran v.M.Anandan
R.Ravindran appealed against an order concerning his rights as assignee of the copyright in a story related to the film 'Chakra'. The court dismissed both appeals, noting that while the primary finding regarding his arbitration application was accepted, the dismissal did not preclude him from asserting other legal causes of action.
Inkpot Films Private Limited v.Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited
Inkpot Films Private Limited filed a civil suit seeking permanent injunctions against various telecom and cable companies for infringing the copyright of its cinematographic film, "Is Love Enough? SIR". The plaintiff subsequently withdrew the entire suit and connected applications before the Madras High Court.
Qliktech International Ab v.DCIT (International Taxation)
The assessee, Qliktech International AB (a Swedish company), was assessed income from the sale of its software products (Qlikview) as 'royalty' under Section 9(1)(vi) and Article 12 of the India-Sweden DTAA. The Tribunal ruled in favor of the assessee, holding that the mere transfer of a copyrighted article does not constitute a transfer of copyright or payment for use/acquisition of rights, and thus is not taxable as royalty.
Refread Solutions Private Limited v.Scientific E-Resource
The plaintiff, a company providing digital online libraries (Refread), sued the defendant for infringing its copyright and engaging in unfair competition. The plaintiff alleged that the defendant was promoting a similar product ('Read Smart Digital') using the plaintiff's tagline and had copied 87% of the website content and 100% of the product. The court found infringement and granted relief.
Shamoil Ahmad Khan v.Falguni Shah And 3 Ors
The plaintiff, a writer, filed a notice of motion seeking temporary injunction against the defendants for telecasting or adapting their web series titled 'Singardaan', claiming both copyright infringement and passing off. The plaintiff alleged that the defendants copied not only the title but also the entire plot and characters from his original story. The court ultimately decided to set aside the request for a full injunction, directing the parties toward trial while imposing interim restraints.
Deepa Jayakumar v.A.L. Vijay
Deepa Jayakumar filed an appeal seeking an interim injunction to prevent respondents (film producers) from making, releasing, or promoting films/web series about the life of Dr. J. Jayalalitha without her consent, citing concerns over privacy and reputation. The court dismissed the appeal, upholding the lower court's order.
Sorting Hat Technologies Private Limited v.Fermat Education and Ors
The appeal challenged a judgment that dismissed applications filed by Sorting Hat Technologies Private Limited to vacate an interim injunction granted to Fermat Education and Ors. The High Court set aside the impugned order, noting that the plaintiffs failed to file a complete transcript of the alleged copyrighted content in the plaint.
Trustees, Jesus Redeems Ministries v.The Bible Society of India
The plaintiff Trust printed the Holy Bible in Tamil language. The defendant sent a Cease and Desist notice alleging copyright infringement. The plaintiff argued that no existing copyright subsists in the joint authorship work (Bower Version) after the statutory period, and the threat was groundless. The court ruled in favor of the plaintiff.
Aveva Information Technology India Pvt.Ltd. v.DCIT-9(1), Mumbai
The assessee, Aveva Information Technology India Pvt.Ltd., challenged the disallowance of license fees paid to its parent company, AVEVA UK, arguing that payments for distributing copyrighted software products in India did not fall under the definition of 'royalty'. The Tribunal ruled in favor of the assessee, holding that such distribution payments were not royalty and thus no TDS was required.
Utv Software Communication Ltd. v.1337X.To and others
The Delhi High Court addressed multiple suits concerning the unauthorized streaming and distribution of copyrighted cinematograph works on various websites. The court found that the defendant-websites were infringing upon the plaintiffs' copyrights.
Warner/Chappell Music Limited v.Spotify AB
The Bombay High Court passed an order in a Notice of Motion concerning copyright infringement related to musical works. The court granted leave to the plaintiff and directed the parties regarding financial deposits and future proceedings, while reserving final judgment on statutory licensing issues.
S.Paul Raj v.Tata Consultancy Services Ltd.
The plaintiff filed a civil suit seeking permanent injunction against TCS for infringing his copyright and patent related to the e-Passport (Smartcard) invention, known as 'FLYGUARD' or 'TCS e-Passport Solution'. Despite multiple hearings and court directions, the plaintiff failed to appear or file necessary affidavits, leading to the dismissal of the suit.
M/S Ravinder Singh & Sons v.M/S Evergreen Publications (India) Ltd & Anr.
The appeal challenged an interim injunction restraining M/S Ravinder Singh & Sons from publishing ICSE Class-X Examination Question Papers. The respondent had purchased the copyrights for these papers, and the court found that the appellant's publication was a near reproduction of the copyrighted material, including answers, thus constituting infringement.
Sarine Technologies Ltd v.Diyora & Bhanderi Corporation & 13
Sarine Technologies Ltd filed a suit alleging that the respondents willfully infringed its copyright in the 'AdvisorTM' rough gemstone planning software. The petitioner claimed the defendants developed and used pirated versions of the software to provide inclusion scanning services to third parties. The High Court issued an order directing the appointment of Commissioners to inspect the computer systems and hard disks of Respondent Nos. 1 and 12.
Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd v.Sony Pictures Networks India Pvt Ltd
Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd filed a quia timet copyright infringement and passing off action against Sony Pictures Networks India Pvt Ltd, alleging that Sony illegally copied the format and concept of Zee's popular talent hunt show, 'India's Best Dramebaaz'. The court heard the Notice of Motion regarding the dispute.
Dy.CIT-LTU, Centre-1 v.Tata Consultancy Services Ltd.
The appeal challenged the Assessing Officer's disallowance of expenses incurred by TCS Ltd. on imported software due to non-deduction of TDS, arguing that the payment constituted 'royalty'. The Tribunal examined whether the purchase was for acquiring a copyrighted article or merely goods for trading purposes.
Adit (It) 3(2), Mumbai v.First Advantage P. Ltd, Mumbai
The Revenue appealed against the CIT(A)'s decision holding that payments made by First Advantage Pvt. Ltd. for using CSPi software from FADV US were not 'royalty' subject to TDS. The core dispute was whether limited access to copyrighted software constitutes royalty or merely payment for a copyrighted article.
The Chancellor, Masters & Scholars Of University of Oxford v.Rameshwari Photocopy Services
The dispute concerned Rameshwari Photocopy Services copying and binding pages from copyrighted academic publications (Oxford/Cambridge University Press) for students at Delhi School of Economics. The High Court set aside the previous judgment, finding that triable issues of fact existed regarding the scope of permitted photocopying.
Super Cassettes Industries Pvt Ltd v.Haridwar Cables Network
The plaintiff, Super Cassettes Industries Pvt Ltd, filed a suit alleging that the defendant, Haridwar Cables Network, was infringing its copyrights by broadcasting T-Series' repertoire (sound recordings, films) on its cable network without obtaining a license. The court found the defendant guilty of copyright infringement and decreed the suit in favor of the plaintiff.
Super Cassettes Industries Pvt Ltd v.Param Hans City Cable Network
The plaintiff, Super Cassettes Industries Pvt Ltd, filed a suit alleging that the defendant, Param Hans City Cable Network, infringed its copyrights by broadcasting copyrighted works (songs and films) without obtaining a license. The court found the unlicensed broadcasts to be an infringement and decreed the suit in favor of the plaintiff.
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