WHAT IS COPYRIGHT?
Copyright is a right to ownership and enjoyment given by the law to creators of literary, dramatic, musical, artistic works and producers of cinematograph films and sound recordings. It is a bundle of rights comprising of rights to reproduction, communication to the public, adaptation and translation of the work. Copyright ensures certain minimum safeguards of the rights of ownership and enjoyment of the authors over their creations, thereby protecting and rewarding creativity.
WHAT IS REGISTRATION OF COPYRIGHT?
Registration of copyright protects the ownership of the work from any unnecessary disputes. In the event of probable copyright infringement dispute, certificate of registration of copyright and the Register of Copyright containing particulars of registered copyrights are considered as “admissible evidence” in a court of law. These serve as prima facie evidence with reference to disputes relating to ownership of copyright.
SECTION 44 OF THE COPYRIGHT ACT, 1957:-
It enumerates the Register of Copyright. It says that there shall be kept at the Copyright Office a register in the prescribed form to be called the Register of Copyrights in which the names or titles of works and the names and addresses of authors, publishers and owners of copyright and such other particulars may be entered by the Registrar of Copyright.
DOCUMENTS REQUIRED FOR COPYRIGHT REGISTRATION:-
1. Name, Address & Nationality of the Candidate – ID proof
2. NOC from the publisher if work published and publisher is different from the applicant.
3. Search Certificate from Trade Mark Office if any
4. NOC from a person whose photograph appears on the work.
5. Power of Attorney
6. 2 Copies of work
7. KYC of author
8. DD/IPO of amount per work
9. NOC from the author if the candidate is different from the author.
PROCEDURE FOR REGISTRATION OF COPYRIGHT:-
The procedure for registration of copyright is provided in Section 44-50A of the 1957 Copyright Act which is as follows.
1) The application is made on Form XIV. Each work should have a different application for registration.
2) The applicant should sign the application and where applicable, should be signed by an Attorney and accepted by the advocate.
3) A specified fee should be paid in any form prescribed by the Registrar of Copyrights.
4) A Dairy No. will the issued by the registrar to the applicant, after which the applicant shall wait for 30 days, if any objections on the work would be received.
5) If no objection is received after 30 days, the application will be scrutinized to ensure that it is free from any discrepancy and if none is found, the registration will be perfected while a copy will be sent to the copyright office to be entered in the register of copyrights.
6) On the receipt of any objection, the official will write to each of the parties about the objection and schedule a hearing with them.
7) The decision of the scrutinizer to either approve or reject the application will be based on the outcome of the hearing.
BENEFITS OF REGISTRATION OF COPYRIGHT:-
The following are the advantages of registration of copyright to the owner of the work:
1) Safeguard of the owner – The owner of the copyright is protected against the copying, distribution, translation and adaptation of the work by anyone.
2) Legal protection – When a work with a copyright certificate is reproduced without authorization, the owner can take legal action on the matter.
3) Brand value – Any work with copyrights protection cannot be used for marketing or advertising purposes by anyone.
4)Global protection – Irrespective of the nationality of the owner, the work with copyright in India will receive the same respect in any country and vice versa.
5) Owner Publicity – The owner of the work will be known across the world because of the copyright registration and can be assessed in the copyright registry database.
CONCLUSION:-
Creativity is the most essential requirement to enable progress in society. Encouraging creativity enables economic and social development of a society. Copyright protects the creativity of people and becomes a source of motivation for the artists, authors, etc.
