SpicyIP Weekly Review (April 2-8)

Topical Highlight 

We have Inika notifying you about Javed Akhtar’s (Chairman) and Achille Forler’s (Advisor) appointment by the Indian Performing Right Society (IPRS) to the Board. She also discusses the past failings of the society, while hoping for greater transparency and better governance in the future.

Thematic Highlight 

Next up, Fellowship applicant Divij Joshi, while discussing the liability of online marketplaces for trade mark infringement, brings up the following discussion points:

i. EU and US case law on the same issue (L’Oreal v. Ebay & Tiffany v. Ebay).
ii. Delhi HC MySpace v. Super Casettes case in relation to intermediary liability.
iii. The S. 79 exception and the standard of “Actual knowledge“.

First up, we have Fellowship applicant Aishwarya Ambardekar, updating us about the recent agreement (“Code of Practice on Search and Copyright“) between various search engines and rights holder organizations in relation to online piracy. Apart from discussing a few features of the above mentioned agreement, she discussed the following:

i. A brief overview of the Copyrights, Designs and Patents Act,1988.
ii. A brief overview of the Digital Economy Act, 2010
iii. A brief overview of the UK initiatives Operation Creative and Infringing Website List.
iv. A brief overview of the Creative Content UK Programme
v. A brief overview of the Indian scenario.

After which, we have Fellowship applicant Shubhi, arguing that online movie reviews constitutes a certain kind of piracy, discusses the following:

i. Basic explanation of Online Piracy, Fair Use and Infringement.
ii. The compilation of multiple sources to breach threshold of “substantial” similarity.
iii. Time of release based restriction of movie reviews.

Next, Shubhi, while discussing the issue of right to publicity, covers the following points:

i. The Christopher Porco case (US); A criminal’s publicity rights.
ii. Proposes a distinction to be drawn between ‘celebrities’ and ‘ordinary’ people.
iii. ICC Development (International) Ltd. v. Arvee Enterprises. (Indian)

Subsequently, Prof. Basheer posted a tribute to the late Tehmtan Andhyarujina. Writing about their interactions during the Novartis case, Prof. Basheer talks about how the late stalwart taught him to “take the “adversary” out of the “adversarial“. To understand that the end that lawyers need to strive for is justice and not inflation of their egos.

After which I came up with a light post on the Bombay HC Phillauri copyright infringement issue. After providing a quick update on the core legal concern, I went on to bring your attention to the problem of complainants approaching the court in the last minute through a fictional reconstruction of the court’s proceedings.

Following which, I discussed competing consideration in relation to joint trade mark ownership. Attempting to provide a quick overview, I discussed the following:

i. Purpose of jointly owned marks.
ii. Problems associated with joint ownership.
iii. The “Swiss Army” case.
iv: Indian provision related to joint ownership.

Next, we had Fellowship applicant Madhurima Gadre, coming up with a “beginner’s guide” for copyright owners who wish to combat infringement of their works on social media. The sub-topics she covers are:

i. Identification of infringement.
ii. Options to approach the infringer.
Iii. Manner approaching infringer.

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International Developments 

Producers of ‘The Big Bang Theory’ win suit over ‘Soft Kitty’ Lyrics

Trump nominates Indian-American as IP Enforcement Head

Facebook’s Oculus allegedly infringed Patent