Piracy costs the Music Industry and the Government millions of rupees each year. Not only does India rank among the top 10 countries affected by piracy, it loses an astounding sum of nearly Rs 450 crore (Rs 4.5 billion) to pirated music. Apart from adding nothing to the creative process, pirates evade payment of royalty, excise duty, sales tax and the promotion and publicity costs. CONSUMERS suffer when they discover that they have bought a poor quality product, and supported theft of intellectual property. Also due to poor quality of CDs, the CD player is also affected. ARTISTS and other right holders suffer since pirate recordings do not earn them any royalties. When revenue from top selling hits is lost to piracy, companies cannot afford to invest in specialist areas and offer consumers a wider selection of music. GOVERNMENT suffers as pirates do not pay taxes. It is estimated that piracy results in loss to the exchequer to the tune of some Rs. 190 millions in Sales Tax, Excise duty and Income Tax, in 1997. PIRATES alone gain. When a pirated copy is sold, money goes to criminals, not to the artists, other right owners, Music Companies or the Government.
Piracy is the unauthorized duplication of an original recording for commercial gain without the consent of the rights owner. The packaging of pirate copies is different from the original. Pirate copies are often compilations, such as the “greatest hits” of a specific artist, or a collection of a specific genre, such as dance tracks. The problem of piracy has arisen with the rapid advance of technology. New techniques of printing, recording and fixation of broadcast or recorded programmes have emerged, making it easy for the pirates to carry on their illegal activities. Piracy is an illegal and criminal activity Piracy in films occurs under the following Circumstances
- Pirated CD’s
- Illegally shown on Cable
- P2P transfer
- Availability on the NET
- Music Piracy occurs due to following
- Availability of Pirated CD’s.
- Copying of cassettes.
- Internet and P2P download.
- Playing of Music in Hotels & Restaurants.
- Public Events
As the Indian economy continues growing, the Indian middle class will also expand significantly. Compared to other nations, the 300 million strong Indian middle class allocates a higher percentage of its monthly expenditure on entertainment. Now the people from Pakistan, Bangladesh, Middle-East demanding and Consuming Indian Entertainment. The increasing consumerism of middle-class India is seen from the sharp growth in the sales for various products like automobiles, color television sets and mobile phones and the burgeoning increase in credit cards and personal loans. There is an increase in the direct consumer spends on entertainment and advertising revenues have also been on the rise. Moreover, there are over 20 million Indians living abroad who are increasingly opting for India-oriented entertainment, as the availability of such content increases. Globally, a clutch of international films with Indian content, themes and performers are receiving wide visibility and acclaim However even though the demand has increased, many fold the industries ( Film & Music) has not been monetized as same.
Music Piracy basically refers to three kinds of illegal Activities :
This is the unauthorized copying of the sound as well as artwork, trademark, label and packaging of the original recording. The aim is to mislead the consumer into thinking that they are buying the genuine product.
Pirate Recordings
These are unauthorized duplications of music from legitimate recordings for commercial gain. Pirated CDs or music cassettes may be compilations such as ‘Top Ten’, ‘Bollywood Hits’ or a combination of hit titles of different music companies. The packing and presentation of a pirate copy does not usually resemble a legitimate commercial release.
Bootlegging
This is recording, duplication and sale of a performance such as a live concert or broadcast without the permission of the artist or the Record Company which may be entitled to control the recording rights of the artists performances.
End User Piracy:
copying the same software onto more than one computer copying office software onto a home computer loaning your software to someone else so that the person can make a copy making a copy and selling the software to someone else selling old software (?)
Reseller Piracy:
An individual or company who takes one copy of software and deliberately reproduces it with fake certificates so that those who purchase it believe it is being purchased from the company which developed it many folks may have the same serial number
BBS/Internet Piracy:
distribution of copyrighted software via the Internet or a bulletin board system sites which are set up to distribute software have made arrangements with the software owners to make their software available Peer-to-peer (P2P) Downloading – giving Enhancement to INTERNET PIRACY P2P networks don’t look at individual requests for media to determine if they are for licensed materials or not Even though as much as 90% of files shared on P2P networks are copyright protected, making a copy of copyrighted song available to others on P2P service without a license is illegal Sharing uncopyrighted artistic creations and files over a P2P network is completely legal.
Downloading MP3’s
Creating a compilation of songs from CDs & converting to MP3 does not in itself constitute infringement. Infringement occurs when you facilitate the distribution of those files. Permission is always required unless use meets criteria of Fair Use. Trademark/Trade Name Infringement: improper use of a registered trademark
In music, copyright begins automatically once a piece of music is created, and documented or recorded (eg. on video, Pan drive, SD card, tape or CD or simply writing down the notation of a score).
If you own the copyright you possess the sole authority to:
- copy the music
- issue, lend or rent copies to the public
- perform, show or play the music in public
- communicate the music to the public (i.e. broadcasting it via TV, radio, Internet etc.)
Currently, no official form of registration is available. In the UK, all original music is protected by copyright from the time it is recorded/written down in some format. It is important to be able to prove that you own the copyright of a particular recording. To do this we suggest the following:
- Send a copy of the recording to yourself by ‘Special Delivery’. Clearly mark the envelope so you know what music it holds but keep it sealed.
- Store a copy with your solicitor or bank manager. Remember to keep a receipt and be aware that this method is likely to cost you some money.
