Aug 22- High Court has struck down a circular issued by the Goa Government on January 30, 2024, which exempted music played at religious ceremonies including weddings from copyright infringement action under the Copyright Act. Referring to the Goa govt Circular as ‘illegal and bad in law’, the Court order stated, “We therefore have no hesitation in holding that the impugned Circular is in the teeth of the provisions of the Copyright Act and therefore, the petitions must succeed.” The issue arose in Writ Petition filed by Phonographic Performance Limited seeking striking down of the impugned circular as impinging on its right as a copyright owner to initiate proceedings for infringement of its copyright while playing the sound recordings at wedding events.
Order https://digitalgoa.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/musicorder.pdf
