Copyright Bill gets Rajya Sabha's stamp of approval

MUMBAI: In a move that will help artists, professionals and content creators to protect their work, the Rajya Sabha on Thursday approved the Copyright Amendment Bill which brings Indian laws in conformity with global norms.

The bill also seeks to remove operational difficulties and address newer issues related to the digital world.

Copyright Amendment Bill brought cheer to music directors and lyricists who will now have a share of the profits earned on their work.

The bill, though, will be sans a clause which provided a provision of giving royalty to the principal director of a film in keeping with the suggestion of the Parliamentary Standing Committee.

"We wanted to actually give this right over royalty to principle director. He is perhaps principal creator. But there was a feeling expressed by Parliamentary Standing Committee that time is not ripe to give that right. So, we are dropping (it)," HRD minister Kapil Sibal said in the upper house of the parliament.

Sibal said piracy issue has been dealt with properly in the bill as also the work of dubbing artists which would be protected by the act.

"We are in the midst of a new era, which I call digital era. In this digital era, the nature of rights of stakeholders need to be looked afresh," he added.

Rajya Sabha and noted lyricist Javed Akhtar, during a Parliamentary discussion, complained that writers and singers do not get to taste the fruits of commercial success as music companies dictate terms. ?They even dictate terms to noted musicians like AR Rahman and others,? he said.

The bill tackles seven broad areas: right of author and music composer, right to visually impaired, extending compulsory regime to unpublished work and imposition of punitive action, among others.

Earlier, the government had cleared the bill by amending the Copyright Act 1958 with the aim to provide ?unassignable rights? to ?creative artists? such as lyricists, playback singers, music directors, film directors and dialogue writers who will be paid royalty every time the movie they have worked in is aired on a television channel.

The bill was earlier deferred due to differences between the Information and Broadcasting Ministry and Human Resource Development Ministry.