New Delhi: Authors of musical, cinematographic
and literary works may now be entitled to royalty in case
their works are used for commercial purposes, a benefit denied
to them so far.
This can be possible because of certain amendments in the
Copyright Act of 1957 which was approved by the Union Cabinet
today for introduction in Parliament.
The amendment is proposed to give "independent rights to
authors of literary and musical works in cinematograph films,
which were hitherto denied and wrongfully exploited by
producers and music companies," Information and Broadcasting
Minister Ambika Soni told reporters after the meeting.
It will ensure that authors retain the right to receive
royalties and benefits enjoyed through the copyright
societies, she said.
Another amendment ensures that the authors of the works,
particularly songs included in the cinematograph films or
sound recordings, receive royalty for commercial exploitation
of such work, Soni said.
"It has been proposed to introduce a system of statutory
licensing to ensure that the public has access to musical
works over the FM radio and TV networks and at the same time
the owners of copyright works are also not subject to any
disadvantages," she said.
The News Broadcasters Association had been apprehensive
about the amendments and asked the government to ensure that
nothing was done to hurt the "well-established and understood
rights of broadcasters to fair use of material, including
broadcast reproduction rights."
PTI
