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SpicyIP Weekly Review (June 2 – June 8)

/ By / Copyright, Others, Patent, Trademark

Post analysing the Courts dealing with PILs in service matters as AIPOWA vs. CGPDTM reaches the SC. Is the opt-out mechanism compatible with the Berne Convention? – Lokesh and Yogesh answer this in a two-part post. Another post on whether India should shift the burden of licensing for AI training data from creators to AI companies. This and much more in our weekly roundup of our blog posts, case summaries, and top IP developments in the country and the world. […]

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Supreme Court to Hear Patent Officers Association’s Challenge to Dr. Unnat P. Pandit’s Appointment as the Controller General

/ By / Others

The heated battle between the incumbent Controller General of Patents Designs and Trademarks and the All India Patent Officers’ Welfare Association (AIPOWA) reached the doorsteps of the Supreme Court this summer in the form of a special leave petition. The petition stems from the Delhi High Court’s refusal (pdf) to entertain AIPOWA’s writ challenging the appointment of the incumbent Controller General- Dr. Unnat P Pandit. The association challenged the appointment of Dr. Pandit, alleging him to be ineligible for the

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Reversing the Opt-Out Burden: Why AI Firms Should Bear Licensing Obligations for Training Data

/ By / Copyright

In light of the various copyright disputes concerning AI firms, Tirthaj Mishra argues that India should shift the burden of licensing for AI training data from creators to AI companies. The guest post critiques the ineffectiveness of the opt-out model using robots.txt and proposes a statutory “Duty to License” framework inspired by India’s broadcasting laws under Section 31D of the Copyright Act. Tirthaj is a 3rd year law student at Maharashtra National Law University Mumbai. His academic focus centers on

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A meme from the popular sitcom 'The office.'

Finally, Relief for Refurbishers! Softening Stance of DHC

/ By / Trademark

Western Digital Technologies v. Hansraj Dugar, on a plain reading, may not seem a significant judgement. To me, however, it indicates a continuing shift in attitude of the Delhi High Court towards refurbishers. In this post, my aim is to give a round-up on cases where trade mark infringement has been alleged owing to refurbishment of goods. I argue, analyzing the recent case, that the Court is softening its stance on infringement when it comes to refurbishers. What explains this shift? How

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SpicyIP Weekly Review (May 26 – June 1)

/ By / Copyright, Others, Patent, Trademark

Post on ANI’s latest copyright action – sending copyright strikes to YouTube creators, another perspective on the ANI vs. OpenAI copyright dispute, this time on excessive judicial borrowing and the storage paradox, and Delhi HC’s ‘Andaz Apna Apna’ order with too much, yet too little IP. This and more in our weekly roundup of blog posts, case summaries, and top IP developments in the country and the world. Anything we are missing out on? Drop a comment below to let

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SpicyIP Tidbit: Constitutional Challenge to Rule 29(4), Copyright Rules Rejected by the SC

/ By / Copyright, Others

In Next Radio Ltd. & Anr. v Union of India (SLP (C) No. 14373/2022), the Supreme Court (“SC”) has “disposed of as withdrawn”, a challenge to the constitutionality of Rule 29(4), Copyright Rules, 2013. The Petitioners sought permission to withdraw the Special Leave Petition, in light of an order passed by the Delhi HC in March 2024 in Super Cassettes Industries Pvt. Ltd. v Music Broadcast Ltd. (The order of the Delhi HC is discussed below). Rule 29 in Chapter

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The Great Flip: Can Opt-Outs be a Permitted Exception? Part II

/ By / Copyright

This post is co-authored with Yogesh Badwal, an incisive student from NLSIU, a SpicyIP member, and, of course, a dear friend. In the previous part, we examined whether the opt-out mechanism, as claimed in Gen-AI litigations, constitutes a prohibited formality for the “enjoyment and exercise” of authors’ rights under Article 5(2) of the Berne Convention. And we argued no. In this post, we address the second question: Can opting out be permitted as an exception under the three-step test outlined

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The Great Flip: Is Opt Out a Prohibited Formality under the Berne Convention? Part I

/ By / Copyright

This post is co-authored with Yogesh Badwal, an incisive student from NLSIU, a SpicyIP member, and, of course, a dear friend. Bonjour, Lately, we’ve been cogitating on this curious concept called the “opt-out”, which has been cropping up with increasing frequency in generative AI litigation, including in India. The EU and the UK are taking the idea seriously and considering giving it statutory teeth. On the surface, it is sold as a middle path, a small price to pay for

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Copyright Strikes? ANI-time! Disappearing Free Speech in the Copyright and Broadcasting World

/ By / Copyright, Others

Of late, private news agency Asian News International (“ANI”) has established its presence in the realm of copyright litigation through its involvement in the OpenAI case (discussed here). The instant case, however, throws open the Pandora’s box, and takes the discussion beyond proprietary rights to Constitutional freedoms. Earlier highlighted by the Reporters’ Collective, and now by a viral video uploaded by YouTuber Mohak Mangal (with more than 6 million views as of 30 May 2025), an aggressive ANI business strategy

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[Part II] ANI v. Open AI – The Storage Paradox is More Than Just Transient!

/ By / Copyright

Following the discussion on non-applicability of ‘derivative work’ theory in the Indian context in light of the ANI v. OpenAI case, in Part of her post, Shama Mahajan argues that the Fair Use defence of incidental or transient storage will be weak against the infringement allegations, given the dynamics of how the data processing and storage work in Gen-AI models. Shama is an LL.M Candidate at National University of Singapore, pursuing her masters in Intellectual Property and Technology Law. ANI

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