THE COPYRIGHT ACT, 1957.ACT NO. 14 OF 1957 AN ACT TO AMEND AND CONSOLIDATE THE LAW RELATING TO COPYRIGHT.

[4th June, 1957.]


BE it enacted by Parliament in the Eighth Year of the Republic of
India as follows:-



CHAP

PRELIMINARY


CHAPTER I

PRELIMINARY


1.Short title, extent and commencement.



1. (1)Short title, extent and commencement. This Act may be called the Copyright Act, 1957.(2) It extends to the whole of India.

(3) It shall come into force on such 1 date as the Central
Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, appoint.


2.Interpretation.


2.Interpretation. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,-

(a) adaptation " means,-

(i)in relation to a dramatic work, the conversion of the work into a non-dramatic work;

(ii)in relation to a literary work or an artistic work, the conversion of the work into a dramatic work by way of performance in public or otherwise;

(iii)in relation to a literary or dramatic work, any abridgement of the work or any version of the work in which the story or action is conveyed wholly or mainly by means of pictures in a form suitable for reproduction in a book, or in a newspaper, magazine or similar periodical ; and


(iv)in relation to a musical work, any arrangement or transcription of the work ;


(b) " architectural work of art " means any building or structure having an artistic character or design, or any model such building or structure

(C)" artistic work " means-

(i)a painting, a sculpture, a drawing (including a diagram, map, chart or plan,), an engraving or a photo-
graph, whether or not any such work possesses artistic quality
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1 21st January, 1958, vide Notification No. S. R. O. 269, dated the 21st January, 1958, see Gazette of India, Extraordinary, Pt. II, see. 3, p. 167.2 Extended to and brought into force in the State of Sikkim w.e.f. 27.4.1979 vide Notifn. No. S>O. 226(K) dt. 27.4.1979, Gaz. of
India, Exty., Pt. II, See 3(110, P. 430.

Extended to and brought into force in Dadra and Nagar Haveli
(w.e.f. 1.7.65) by Reg. 6 of 1963., S.2 & Sch. I.

Extended to Goa, Daman and Diu with modifications, by Reg. 12 of
1962, s.3 and Sch.

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8.(ii) an architectural work of art ; and

(iii)any other work of artistic craftsmanship

(d) author " means,-

(i) in relation to a literary or dramatic work, the author of the work ;

(ii) in relation to a musical work, the composer;

(iii)in relation to an artistic work other than a photograph,the artist ;

(iv) in relation to a photograph, the person taking the photograph;

(v) in relation to a cinematograph film, the owner of the film at the time of its completion ; and

(vi)in relation to a record, the owner of the original plate from which the record is made, at the time of the making of the plate ;

(dd) "broadcast means communication to the public-
(i) by any means of wireless diffusion, whether in any one or more of the forms of signs, sounds or visual images; or

(ii) by wire, and includes a re-broadcast;


(e) "calendar year" means the year commencing on the 1st day of January;

(f)cinematograph film " includes the sound track, if any, and "cinematograph " shall be construed as including any work produced by any process analogous to cinematography;


Explanation.--For the purposes of this clause, "video films"
shall also be deemed to be work produced by a process analogous to cinematography.

(ff) "communication to the public" means communication to the public in whatever manner, including communication through satellite;

(g) " delivery", in relation to a lecture,include delivery by means of any mechanical instrument or by broadcast.

(h) " dramatic work " includes any piece for recitation, choreographic work or entertainment in dumb show, the scenic arrangement or acting form of which is fixed in writing or otherwise but does not include a cinematograph film;

(hh) "duplicating equipment" means any mechanical contrivance or device used or intended to be used for making copies of any work;

(i) " engravings " include etchings, lithographs, wood-
cuts,prints and other similar works, not being photographs ;

(j) " exclusive licence " means a licence which confers on the licensee or on the licensee and persons authorised by him, to the exclusion of all other persons (including the owner of the copyright), any right comprised in the copyright in a work, and " exclusive licensee " shall be construed accordingly;

(k) "Government work" means a work which is made or published by or under the direction or control of--


(i) the Government or any department of the Government;

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1 Subs. by Act 23 of 1993, s.2 (w.e.f. 9.8.1984)

2 Ins. by s.3 ibid. (w.e.f. 9.8.1984)

3 Ins. by Act 65 of 1984, s.2 (w.e.f. 8.10.84)
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9.(ii) any Legislature in India ;

(iii)any court, tribunal or other judicial authority in
India;

(l) "Indian work" means a literary, dramatic or musical work,-

(i) the author of which is a citizen of India; or

(ii) which is first published in India; or

(iii) the author of which, in the case of an unpublished work, is at the time of the making of the work, a citizen of India;


(m) infringing copy " means,-

(i) in relation to a literary, dramatic, musical or artistic work, a reproduction thereof otherwise than in the form of a cinematograph film;

(ii)in relation to a cinematograph film, a copy of the film or a record embodying the recording in any part of the sound track associated with the film;

(iii) in relation to a record, any such record embodying the same recording ; and

(iv) in relation to a programme in which a broadcast reproduction right subsists under section 37, a record recording the programme,

if such reproduction, copy or record is made or imported in contravention of the provisions of this Act

(n) " lecture " includes address, speech and sermon

(o) " literary work " includes tables compilations and computer programmes, that is to say, programmes recorded on any disc, tape, perforated media or other information storage device, which , if fed into or located in a computer or computer based equipment is capable of reproducing any information;


(p) " musical work " means any combination of melody and harmony or either of them, printed, reduced to writing or otherwise graphically produced or reproduced;

(q) " performance " includes any mode of visual or acoustic presentation, including any such presentation by the exhi-
bition of a cinematograph film, or by means of broadcast or by the use of a record, or by any other means and, in relation to a lecture, includes the delivery of such lecture
;


(r) "performing rights society " means a society, association or other body, whether incorporated or not, which carries on business in India of issuing or granting licences for the performance in India of any works in which copyright subsists;


(s) "photograph " includes photo-lithograph and any work produced by any process analogous to photography but does not include any part of a cinematograph film;

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1 Subs. by Act 23 of 1983, s.2 (w.e.f. 9.8.1984)

2 Subs. by s.3, ibid. (w.e.f. 9.8.1984)
3 Subs. by Act 65 of 1984, s.2 (w.e.f.8.10.1984)
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10.(t) "plate " includes any stereotype or other plate, stone, block, mould, matrix, transfer, negative duplicating equipment or other device used or intended to be used for printing or reproducing copies of any work, and any matrix or other appliance by which records for the acoustic presentation of the work are or are intended to be made ;

(u) prescribed " means prescribed by rules made under this
Act.-


(w) record " means any disc, tape, perforated roll or other device in which sounds are embodied so as to be capable of being reproduced therefrom, other than a sound track associated with a cinematograph film ;


(x) recording " means the aggregate of the sounds embodied in and capable of being reproduced by means of a record;


(y) work " means any of the following works, namely: -

(i) a literary, dramatic, musical or artistic work;

(ii) a cinematograph film;

(iii) a record;

(z) "work of joint authorship" means a work produced by the collaboration of two or more authors in which the contri-
bution of one author is not distinct from the contribution of the other author or authors ;

(za) " work of sculpture " includes casts and models.



3.Meaning of Publication.


3.Meaning of Publication. For the purposes of this Act,
"publication" means,-

(a) in the case of a literary, dramatic, musical or artistic work,the issue of copies of the work, either in whole or in part, to the public in a manner sufficient to satisfy the reasonable requirements of the public having regard to the nature of the work;

(b) in the case of a cinematograph film, the sale or hire or offer for sale or hire of the film or copies thereof to the public;


(c) in the case of a record, the issue of records to the public in sufficient quantities;

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1 Omitted by Act 23 of 1983, s.3, (w.e.f.9.8.1984)

2 Subs. by s.4, ibid (w.e.f. 9.8.1984)

3 Ins. by Act 65 of 1984, s.2, (w.e.f.8.10.1984)
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11.but does not, except as otherwise expressly provided in this Act, include,-


(i) in the case of a literary, dramatic or musical work, the issue of any records recording such work ;

(ii) in the case of a work of sculpture or an architectural work of art, the issue of photographs and engravings of such work.


4.When work not deemed to be published or performed in public.


4.When work not deemed to be published or performed in public.
Except in relation to infringement of copyright, a work shall not be deemed to be published or performed in public, if published, or performed in public, without the licence of the owner of the copy-
right.



5.When work deemed to be first published in India.


5.When work deemed to be first published in India. For the purposes of this Act, a work published in India shall be deemed to be first published in India, notwithstanding that it has been published simultaneously in some other country, unless such other country provides a shorter term of copyright for such work ; and a work shall be deemed to be published simultaneously in India and in another country if the time between the publication in India and the publication in such other country does not exceed thirty days or such other period as the Central Government may, in relation to any specified country, determine.



6.Certain disputes to be decided by Copyright Board.


6.Certain disputes to be decided by Copyright Board.
If any question arises,--
(a) whether for the purposes of section3, copies of any,--
(i) literary, dramatic,musical or artistic work are issued to the public in a manner sufficient to satisfy the reasonable requirements of the public; or

(ii) records are issued to the public in sufficient quantities; or.


(b) whether for the purposes of section 5, the term of copyright for any work is shorter in any other country than that provided in respect of that work under this Act ;

it shall be referred to the Copyright Board constituted under section
11 whose decision thereon shall be final.



7.NAtionality of author where the making of unpublished work is extendedover considerable period.


7.NAtionality of author where the making of unpublished work is extended over considerable period. Where, in the case of an unpublished work, the making of the work is extended over a considerable period, the author of the work shall, for the purposes of this Act, be deemed to be a citizen of, or domiciled in, that country of which he was a citizen or wherein he was domiciled during any substantial part of that period.


8.Domicile of corporations.


8.Domicile of corporations. For the purposes of this Act, a body corporate shall be deemed to be domiciled in India if it is incorporated under any law in force in India;

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1 Subs. by Act 23 of 1983, s.5 (w.e.f. 9.8.1984)