The expression of literary, dramatic, musical and artistic works, cinematograph films, and sound recordings. The works must be original.
Any single word, titles or names, or short word combinations.
Any slogans, short phrases, methods, plots or factual information.
Ordinarily, the author is the first owner of copyright in a work.
Yes, in such a case, a No Objection Certificate from the author is required.
In the case of a work made in the course of the author’s employment under a contract of service or apprenticeship, the employer shall, in the absence of any agreement to the contrary, be the first owner of the copyright therein.
A bundle of rights including, inter alia, rights of reproduction, communication to the public, issuance of copies of the work to the public, performance of the work in public, adaptation and translation of the work, depending on the work.
No. A person cannot translate a work enjoying copyright without the permission of the copyright owner.
No, copyright is an inherent right that comes into existence as soon as the work is created.
No. The copyrighted work need not be registered to avail of the remedy of infringement.
A Certificate of Registration of copyright serves as prima facie evidence of ownership in a court of law.
Assists with criminal raids and other forms of enforcement.
Yes, both published and unpublished works can be registered.
A single copyright application must have only a single work. A group of works cannot be clubbed into one filing.
A website usually consists of different components which may be copyrightable subject matter, such as text, tables, computer programmes (“literary works”); photographs, paintings, diagram, map, chart or plan (“artistic works”); works consisting of music and including graphical notation of such work (“musical works”); “sound recordings” and “cinematograph films”.
A website as a whole is not subject to copyright protection. A separate application is required to be made for each component work/content appearing on a website.
If the subject of a copyright application is also capable of being protected as a trade mark (for instance, in cases of artistic works), a No Objection Certificate (NOC) must be obtained from the Trade Marks Registry to submit to the Copyright Office at the time of filing the copyright application.
You can use the © symbol on your work/creation at any time, as long as it is your own original work, to communicate that it is protected by copyright law and to inform the public of your ownership. The symbol serves as a useful reminder of your rights.
Application for registration on the appropriate form, including Statement of Particulars and Statement of Further Particulars.
2 Copies of the work to be protected.
No Objection Letter(s) from the author(s) that they have no objection to the copyright in the work being registered in the applicant’s name.
No Objection Letter(s) from the publisher(s) of the work if the applicant is different from the publisher and the work is published.
No Objection Certificate from the Trade Marks Registry, where required.
Signed Power of Attorney.
Requisite official fee, depending on type of work.
Step 1: Application for registration is made and filed on appropriate form, including Statement of Particulars and Statement of Further Particulars.
Step 2: Thereafter, the Copyright Office examines the application(s) and flags discrepancies, if any. If the Copyright Office raises any objections (which are normally procedural in nature), a response will need to be filed.
Step 3: Mandatory 30-day waiting period to receive any third-party objection(s).
Step 4: The Copyright Office will then issue the copyright registration certificate(s).
No conclusive timeframe. Varies on functioning of the Copyright Office. Currently, may take around 8-12 months.
In the case of original literary, dramatic, musical and artistic works the 60-year period is counted from the year following the death of the author.
Yes, either wholly or partially and either generally or subject to limitations and either for the whole term of the copyright or any part thereof.
Computer Software or program can be registered as a ‘literary work’. The application for registration of copyright for software products requires the submission of the ‘Source Code’ and “Object Code”.
Yes. Copyrights of works of the countries mentioned in the International Copyright Order are protected in India, as if such works are Indian works.
Yes, India is a signatory to the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic works, so copyright protection would extend to other member countries.
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