MUMBAI: The Indian Performing Right Society Limited (“IPRS”), a company limited by guarantee formed in the year 1969 and registered under the registered under the Companies Act, 1956 for the purpose of monitoring, protecting and enforcing the rights, interests and privileges of its members comprising of authors, composers and publishers of literary and/or musical works has been granted an ex-parte ad-interim injunction from the High Court of Bombay restraining the Restaurant/ Club “He Said, She Said” and its Directors, Officers, servants, agents, representatives and all others acting for and on behalf of its behalf, from in any manner communicating and/or performing the musical and/or literary works of members of Plaintiff in premises of its hotels and in any events held and organised in premises of its hotels including the Christmas and New Year events organised during 25 to 31 December, 2015, without obtaining a license from the Plaintiff.

The Order dated 22 December, 2015 is all the more important as it recognizes the rights of IPRS as an owner of rights. Hon’ble Mr. Justice S. J. Kathawala, granting the ex-parte injunction held “This means that despite existence of a registered Copyright Society, an Author/Owner is free to be not part of it and can always license his own rights/works independently. Thus, there is no restriction on owner of copyrights in issuing or granting licenses in respect of such literary and musical rights. In its capacity as an owner of copyrights therefore the Plaintiff is entitled to grant license and demand royalty/license fees for performance and/or communication to the public of the musical and literary works owned by the Plaintiff. Therefore performance and/or communication to the public of any musical and literary works owned by the Plaintiff without obtaining its license amounts to infringement of Plaintiff's copyrights under Section 51 of the Copyright Act, 1957”. Further, the High Court of Bombay, in the event the Restaurant refuses to accept service of the aforesaid order, has directed the Senior Inspector of the local Police Station shall forthwith depute one of his Officers along with the representative of the Plaintiff to serve a copy of this order on the Defendant and obtain his acknowledgement.

The IPRS’s rights as owner of works has also been recognized by the High Court of Delhi on 23 December, 2015. Where in a case of Copyright Infringement filed by the IPRS against the Great Indian Nautanki Company Pvt. Ltd. (the entity behind “Kingdom of Dreams”), after hearing the counsels for IPRS and GINC, wherein the counsel for GINC pointed out that IPRS has withdrawn its application for re-registration and hence is not entitle to issue and grant licenses, the Hon’ble Justice Mr. A. K. Pathak, was pleased to direct counsel for the GINC to deposit INR 15,00,000 (Rupees Fifteen Lakhs Only) with the Registrar General of High Court to continue to play the musical and literary works belonging to the repertoire of IPRS.

Further, the High Court of Bombay, in the event the Restaurant refuses to accept service of the aforesaid order, has directed the Senior Inspector of the local Police Station shall forthwith depute one of his Officers along with the representative of the Plaintiff to serve a copy of this order on the Defendant and obtain his acknowledgement.