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CS Professional · Intellectual Property Rights - Law and Practice · Types of Intellectual Property

Sunil, a Hyderabad lyricist, writes lyrics for a film, and the composer Anil creates the music. The producer owns the film's copyright. Under the Copyright Act, 1957, what is the position of the lyrics' author?

Sunil keeps copyright in the lyrics as a separate literary work. The producer owns the film copyright, but the lyricist's rights, including royalties for exploitation other than with the film, are preserved under the Act unless validly assigned.

  1. ASunil's rights in the lyrics are lost once the film is made
  2. BSunil retains copyright in the lyrics, and cannot be deprived of royalty entitlement when they are exploited other than with the film, absent assignmentCorrect
  3. CThe producer automatically becomes owner of the lyrics for all uses
  4. DSunil and Anil jointly own the film copyright

Explanation

The film copyright vests in the producer, but the authors of underlying literary and musical works retain their separate copyrights in those works. The Act protects their right to royalties for uses outside the film's exhibition, so the producer does not automatically own the lyrics.

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