Music industry upbeat over HC order on online piracy

Mumbai: Music industry has termed the Calcutta High Court order as landmark, which it feels will help control online piracy.

"It is a landmark order in a way that the high court directed internet service providers (ISPs) to block the websites that illegally allow the downloading of songs which result in piracy. The judiciary has understood the sensitive issue of piracy. Even the ISPs have shown their support," the Indian Music Industry (IMI) General Secretary Savio D`Souza told PTI. IMI, an umbrella organisation of over 140 music companies, including market leaders like Saregama, Universal Music, Sony Music, Venus, Tips etc, had served the notices to ISPs like Bharti Airtel, Vodafone India, Reliance Communications Infrastructure, Sify Technologies, Hathway for alleged violation of music copyright by illegal websites. In its order last week, the high court restrained the ISPs from reproducing, adopting, distributing, communicating, transmitting, disseminating or displaying in any manner infringing the copyright in sound recordings belonging to the IMI member companies. "I believe nowhere in the world this kind of order has come out in support of the music industry...So it is a big victory for us. The high court understood our concern about the illegal business. With this order we expect to control piracy in three to six months," owner of Tips Music Company Ramesh Taurani said. Echoing him, Sony Music Entertainment president for India and Middle East Sridhar Subramaniam said, "We are very happy as the order is first of its kind in the world of music. The best part is even the ISPs have shown their support by issuing notices to illegal websites which means even they are aware about piracy and its consequences". With this the music industry will grow and that will bring in more money, he said. "It is a remarkable order all I hope is that it gets implemented at the earliest and properly. This will benefit the music industry in a big way and decrease piracy. Internet is our future and we need to ensure the right, legal kind of content is run on it," T-Series chief Bhushan Kumar said. PTI