Intellectual Property Rights and Digital Piracy: Emerging Legal and Enforcement Challenges in India

Abstract

India has become one of the world's biggest digital content markets with the emergence of high-speed internet, the advent of cheap smart phones and streaming options, but it has also become an epicenter of online copyright violations. The present paper makes a doctrinal study into the legal and institutional measures against digital piracy in India. It chronicles the statutory landscape according to the “Copyright Act, 1957”, the “Information Technology Act, 2000” and the recently amended “Cinematograph Act, 1952”; features judicial innovations by the Delhi High Court such as “John Doe” orders and “dynamic injunctions”; and explores institutional change through the “National IPR Policy, 2016” and the establishment of a “dedicated Intellectual Property Division”. While the jurisprudence around the blocking of websites in India has been seen to have matured by leaps and bounds, India still remains on the Priority Watch List of the United States Trade Representative and industry estimates suggest that fraud gains around two hundred and twenty-five billion rupees from the media and entertainment industry every year. Citing a need for greater enforcement but protection of due process and free expression, the paper concludes with recommendations.