Copyright Registration

Literary work (i.e. books, articles, notes, texts, etc.) Artistic work (i.e. Logo, design, etc.) Software or computer program (mobile, desktop or any other) Websites and web content. Cinematographic film and photographs. Sound recording (i.e. song, record, cassette, CD, etc.) Dramatic and musical work (i.e. skit, play, movie, etc.) Work of architecture.

The copyrighted work cannot be copied by anyone else. This helps maintain the originality of the work and makes the creator of the work the sole receiver of any consideration receivable for the work. The certificate (where the details of the work are entered on registration) is the prima facie evidence in all courts. If the work is used without permission by anyone else, it is a cognizable offence i.e. one can directly file a police complaint to stop the misuse of the work. One does not have to go the court near the place where the infringement has occurred, the owner of the copyrighted work can file a complaint in a court near him and the respondent regardless of where he or she is situated will have to appear before the court where the appeal is filed. The owner of the work can reproduce the work in any material form including storing of it in any medium such as electronic means, etc. In case of computer program the rights also includes to sell or give on hire, any copy of the computer program.

Courts are empowered to grant the following relief in case of infringement of copyright: Temporary and permanent injunction (Prohibition to continue the act of infringement). Impounding and destruction of all infringing copies. Actual monetary damages plus the infringer’s profits. Statutory Costs – Court charges and reasonable attorneys’ fees. In addition to civil remedy, the Copyright Act enables the owner of a copyright to take criminal proceedings against the infringer.The offence of infringement is punishable with imprisonment which may extend from a minimum period of 6 moths to a maximum period of 3 years and a fine of Rs. 50,000 to Rs. 2 Lac.

To get your Copyright Registered, it needs to be applied with the Copyright Office, HRD Ministry Government of India, New Delhi, India. There is only 1 office in India situated in Delhi.

Generally it takes around 4 to 6 months to get it registered. We have also been able to obtain it within 1 month where the work is fairly simple and the client follows all the instructions given by us on time.

Yes, if an exact copy of the work already exists with the Copyright Office the application will get rejected. As per the Copyright Act, if there is any original aspect added to the work already registered you will be given a new certificate. Awareness about copyrights in India is so less that a chance of registration being already present is very rare.

I have a brand name and a logo, do I get it trademark or copyrighted? A Trademark is done for the brand name, whereas a copyright is for an artwork which can be a book, script, logo, design, etc.

If the work to be copyrighted is a Literary work, Software or an Artistic work, then only soft copies are needed. But if it is a sound recording or video recording, then a CD or Pendrive containing the work to be copyrighted is required. You can either send this to us at Law Certis Consulting, or courier it directly to the Copyright Office situated at Delhi.

Once the Copyright Registration application is filed, the copyright registrar issues a discrepancy letter when there are any additional explanations that it requires from the applicant. This letter is usually sent to the attorney and the applicant. We cover this service in our service package and hence we will review the discrepancy letter and inform you about the additional requirements mentioned in it. Once you provide us with the information, we will upload it to the online portal and the registrar will proceed with your application.

If the registrar is not satisfied with the response to the discrepancy letter mentioned above, a hearing is called for. Our attorney will attend the hearing and understand what the registrar has to say and give the appropriate reply on your behalf. This then proceeds the application for registration.

Once the application gets registered, the registry generates the Registration Certificate and Certified Copy of Work and uploads it online. We then download the same from our portal and email it to you as it is in soft copy form.

Refusal of the copyright application doesn’t mean you have to stop selling your work in the market. It only means that the registrar cannot grant you the certificate to protect it from being copied by someone else. The reason for refusal needs to be analysed and a fresh application can be made after rectifying the reasons for refusal.

The office of the Registrar of Copyrights is located in New Delhi. But via the online portal we can file the applications from anywhere. The physical submission of copyright applications is prohibited by the office and hence even if you visit the office, you still have to file the application via the online process itself.