SJC Institute Of Technology Research Methodology

Module 4 : Copyrights and Related Rights, Trademarks

Copyright
1. Define Copyright? Explain different Classes of Copyrights
Copyrights‘refer to the legal rights provided by law to the original creator of the work in the
fields of literature and computer software. The ‗Related Rights‘encompass the author‘s work in the
fields of dramatics, sound recording, film/video recordings, paintings, architecture, etc.

Different Classes of Copyrights

 Literature: Books, Essays, Research articles, Oral speeches, Lectures, Compilations,
Computer programme, Software, Databases.
 Dramatics: Screenplays, Dramas.
 Sound Recordings: Recording of sounds regardless of the medium on which such recording
is made e.g. a Phonogram and a CD-ROM.
 Artistic: Drawing, Painting, Logo, Map, Chart, Photographs, Work of Architecture,
Engravings, and Craftsmanship.
 Musical: Musical notations, excluding any words or any action intended to be sung, spoken
or performed with the music. A musical work need not be written down to enjoy Copyright
protection.
 Cinematograph Films: ‗Cinematograph Film‘ is a visual recording performed by any
medium, formed through a process and includes a sound recording. For example, Motion
Pictures, TV Programmes, Visual Recording, Sound Recording, etc.

2. Explain Criteria for Copyright?

To qualify for Copyright protection, a work must exist in some physical (or tangible) form.
The duration of the existence of the physical form may vary from a very short period to many years.
Virtually any form of expression which can be viewed or listened to is eligible to qualify as
Copyright. Even hurriedly scribbled notes for an impromptu speech are considered copyrightable
material.
The Copyright work has to be expressed by the creator in his frame of thought. the work has
to be original i.e. the author created it from independent thinking void of duplication. The original
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work may lack quality or quantity or aesthetic merit or all these parameters; still, it will pass the test
of copyrightable work.
Copyright protection also requires at least some creative effort on the part of the author.
There is no minimum limit for the extent of creativeness. It is a subjective matter. The minimal level
of creativity needed for Copyright protection depends on the judgment of the evaluator
As an example, mere changing the dimensions of a book will not be granted Copyright protection.

3. Explain Ownership of Copyright

 The Copyright laws clearly state the ownership of Copyright.
 The person who created the work is considered as the first (original) holder (owner) of
the Copyright.
 In case the author is an employee and has been contracted to do the work by a
proprietor (of the company/firm/society /organization, etc.), the owner of the
Copyright shall be the proprietor.
 The government will be the primary owner of the government work in the absence of
any kind of arrangement.
 The person delivering a speech is the first owner of the Copyright.

To obtain permission to use copyrighted material, a request for the same should be made to the legal
owner. The request must mention the following:
 Title, author and/or editor, and edition.
 Precise material to be used.
 The number of copies.
 The purpose of the material e.g. educational, research, etc.
 Form of distribution e.g. hard copy to classroom, posted on the internet.
 Whether the material is to be sold e.g. as part of a course pack.

4. Explain Copyrights of the Author

The Copyrights of the creator/author are legally protected under Section 14 of the
Copyright Act, 1957. The content (i.e. work) created by the author cannot be used or
published by anyone without the author‘s consent. Copyrights provide exclusive rights to the
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author in the areas of publication, distribution, and usage. Copyright owner enjoys two
types of rights i.e.

1 Economic Rights are associated with financial benefits accruing from the sale of
copyrights. As per the Act, Copyright owners can authorize or prohibit:
 Reproduction of the work in any form, including printed
 publications or sound recordings.
 Distribution of copies of the work.
 Public performance of the work.
 Broadcasting/communicating the work to the public.
 Translating the work into other languages.
 Adaptation of the work, such as converting a novel into a screenplay.

2 Moral Rights include Right of Paternity‘ and Right of Integrity‘. The Right of Paternity‘ even if
the Copyright has been licensed to another party, the original author of the work retains the right to
claim authorship i.e. the name of the author/s will remain even though Copyrights have been
transferred to another party
Right of Integrity‘- the original author has the right to prevent misuse of the work e.g.
alterations/additions/ deletions in work resulting in misrepresentation of the said work or harming the
honor and reputation of the author.

5. Explain Copyright Infringements

As per the Copyrights Acts, 1957, the following acts are regarded as an infringement of
Copyrights:
 Making copies for sale or hire or selling or letting them for hire without permission.
 Permitting any place for the performance of owned work (in public) where such performance
constitutes an infringement of Copyright.
 Distributing infringing copies for trade or to such an extent to affect the interest of the owner
of the Copyright prejudicially.
 Public exhibition of infringing copies for trade purposes.
 Importation of infringing copies.
 Translating a work without the permission of the owner
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6. What is fair use Doctrine.?

As per the rule of law, Copyrighted materials cannot be used by anybody without the proper
consent of the legal owners (of the Copyright). However, limited use of Copyrighted materials for
teaching and research purposes is legally permitted, under The Fair Use Doctrine‘, which comprises
of the four-part test:
 The character of the use - use of the work is purely educational, non-profit and personal.
 Nature of the work - The use of work is factual in nature and not imaginative.
 Amount of the portion to be used - permission is not needed if only a small portion of Copyright
protected material is to be used. However, this parameter is debatable now.
 Impact of use on the value of the Copyrighted material - If a small portion of the work is copied
and is not affecting the author‘s economic and moral rights, it will be excused from the infringement.

7. Explain the process of Copyright registration along with Diagram.

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It is not necessary to register a work to claim Copyright. Once a work is created via any
medium, the work receives automatic Copyright safety. It is merely a prima facie proof of an entry in
respect of the work in the Copyright register maintained by the Registrar of Copyrights.

 A duly filled application (Form XIV) is submitted to the Copyright Office at the following
address: The Registrar of Copyright, Plot no. 32, Boudhik Sampada Bhawan, Sector 14,
Dwarka, New Delhi - 110075.
 Any person who is either an author of the work or assignee of the concerned work can file an
application for Copyright.
 After applying, there is a mandatory waiting period of 30 days.
 If any person has any objection to the claim/s made in the application, he can contact the
office of the Registrar of Copyrights.
 After giving an opportunity of hearing to both the parties, the Registrar may decide the case in
favour or against the author of the work.
 Once the objections (if any) are cleared, the application is evaluated by the examiners.
 If any doubts/queries are raised, the applicant is given ample time (around 45 days) to clear
these objections.

8. Explain Validity of Copyright

In general, the validity of Copyright is for 60 years. This period starts either from the
year after the death of the author (in case of literature, dramatic, musical and artistic works)
or f rom the date of publication of the work (in case of cinematograph films, sound
recordings, photographs, posthumous publications, works of government and works of
international organisations).

9. Explain Non-Copyright Work

The works not under the jurisdiction of Copyrights are as follows:
 The ideas, concepts, and principles themselves cannot be protected under Copyright, only the
form in which they are expressed can be copyrighted.
 Facts, such as scientific or historical discoveries, are not copyright protected. Any fact a
person discovers in the course of research cannot be Copyright protected.
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 Copyright does not protect titles, names, slogans, short phrases, short word combinations,
methods, or factual information.
 Certificates are not considered as Copyrightable subject matter as there is not much scope for
creativity.
 The Copyright registration for a website, as a whole, is not possible.

10. Write a short Notes on a) Copyright society

Many a time, authors and other owners of Copyrights are either unable or lose track of all the
uses of their work, including the collection of royalties, infringement issues, etc. To
overcome these hurdles, Copyright Societies have cropped up.
As per Section 33 of the Copyright Act, 1957, a Copyright Society is a registered
collective administration society formed by authors and other owners of the Copyright.
Copyright Society can perform the following functions:
 Keep track of all the rights and infringements related to their clients.
 Issue licences in respect of the rights administered by the society.
 Collect fees in pursuance of such licences.
 Distribute such fees among owners of Copyright after making deductions for the
administrative expenses.
A Copyright Society can be formed by a group of seven or more copyright holders. The term
of registration of a Copyright Society is for five years.

b) Copyright Board

The Copyright Board is a regulatory body constituted by the government, to perform judicial
functions as per the Copyright Act of India.
The Board comprises of a Chairman and members (2-14) to arbitrate on Copyright cases. The
Chairman of the Board is of the level of a judge of a High Court. As per the Act, the Board has the
power to:

 Hear appeals against the orders of the Registrar of Copyrights.

 Hear applications for rectification of entries in the Register of
 Copyrights.
 Adjudicate upon disputes on the assignment of Copyrights.
 Grant compulsory licences to publish or republish works (in
 certain circumstances).
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 Grant compulsory licence to produce and publish a translation of

 a literary or dramatic work in any language after seven years
 from the first publication of the work.
 Hear and decide disputes as to whether a work has been
 published or about the date of publication or the term of
 Copyright of a work in another country.
 Fix rates of royalties in respect of sound recordings under the
 cover-version provision.
 Fix the resale share right in original copies of a painting, a
 sculpture or a drawing and original manuscripts of a literary or
 dramatic or musical work.

Trademark

1. What is a Trademark? Explain Trademark Eligibility Criteria

a Trademark (or Trade Mark) is a unique symbol which is capable of identifying as well as
differentiating products or services of one organization from those of others. The Trademark is
anything that identifies a brand to a common consumer.
For goods/services to be legally classified as Trademark, they need to pass the following conditions:
Distinctiveness - The goods and services for which the protection is sought should possess enough
uniqueness to identify it as a Trademark. It must be capable of identifying the source of goods or
services in the target market.
Descriptiveness - The Trademark should not be describing the description of the concerned goods or
services. Descriptive marks are unlikely to be protected under Trademark law.
Similarity to the prior marks - The mark should be unique and should not be having similarity to
the existing marks.
2. Who may apply for registration of a trademark?
Any person who is a proprietor of the Trademark is eligible to apply for registration of
Trademark. The mark can be filed collectively by two or more applicants and for that
purpose, support documents need to be submitted. An organization or association can file for
the collective mark and the same can be used by its members. The most appropriate example
for this mark is the Reliance‘ symbol, which indicates all products falling under the
organization.
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3. Explain Designation of Trademark Symbols

4. Explain the Classification of Trademarks.

Goods and Services under Trademarks are classified as per the Nice Agreement‘ (1957) administered by
WIPO. Trademark classification comprises of 45 classes, out of which 34 are for goods and 11 are for
services.
Class 1 is for Chemicals for use in industry, science and photography, agriculture, horticulture and forestry;
Unprocessed artificial resins, unprocessed plastics; Fire extinguishing and fire prevention compositions
Class 45 is for legal services; Security services for the physical protection of tangible property and
individuals; Personal and social services rendered by others to meet the individuals‘ needs.

5. What are the types of Trademarks that can be registered?

 Trademark can be a word that must be able to speak, spell and remember.
 It is highly recommended that one should choose the Trademark like invented word, created
words, and unique geographical name.
 One should refrain from Trademarks like common geographical name, common personal
name and the
 praising words which describe the quality of goods, such as best, perfect, super, etc.
 it is suggested to conduct a market survey to ensure if a similar mark is used in the market.

Following are some examples of the registerable Trademarks:

1 Any name including personal or surname of the applicant or predecessor in business or the
signature of the person e.g. the Trademark ‗BAJAJ‘ is named after industrialist Mr. Jamnalal
Bajaj.
2 A word having no relevance to the product/services e.g. Trademark ‗INDIA GATE‘ is being
used for food grains and allied products.
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3 Letters or numerals or any combination thereof e.g. ‗YAHOO‘ is the abbreviation of the
phrase ‗Yet Another Hierarchical Officious Oracle‘. It has now become a worldwide famous
Trademark.

6 Innumerate in brief the complete Procedure for registration of a trade Mark along with Diagram?

1Prior Art Search : Before applying, the applicant needs to conduct a prior art search to ensure the
registration criteria.

2 f ill the application form for registration : The application is filed at the Trademarks Office subject to the
jurisdiction of the applicant

3 The application is assigned an application number within a few days.

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4 The application is scrutinized by a professional examiner. If everything is in order, the particulars of

the application are published in the official Trademark journal. Otherwise, he will send the
objections to the applicant for rectification. Based on the satisfactory response, the examiner would
recommend the revised application to be published in the journal.
5 Once the Trademark is published in the official journal, the public has an opportunity to file an
objection, if any, within 90 days.

6 After hearing both the parties, the officer decides whether to proceed further for the grant of
Trademark or disallow the grant of Trademark.

7Once the application has successfully completed all formalities, a Trademark registration certificate is issued
in the name of the applicant

7 Can a registered Trademark be removed from the register

Yes, it can be removed if:
 Trademark was registered without any bona fide intention of using it.
 If the Trademark is not being used for a continuous period of 5 years from the registration date or 3
months prior to filing the application for registration.
 Registered Trademark was disallowed but inadvertently existed in the official register.
 Trademark Registrar has the power to terminate a registered Trademark on a suo moto basis.
8 Is the sound or smell registrable as a Trademark
sound or smell is registrable as a mark, as long as it is distinct and can be reproduced graphically.
The Trademark, 4711 cologne‘ has been registered as a chemical formula. The sound can be
registered as a Trademark, provided it can be recorded in MP3 format and depicted graphically.