The photographs used for advertisement on the website, qualify as “artistic works” within the meaning of Section 2(c) of the Copyrights Act, 1957.
In the recent case of LOUIS VUITTON MALLETIER v. WWW.HAUTE24.COM & ORS[1]. The plaintiff Louis Vuitton filed a suit against the defendant for using the copyrighted photographs of the plaintiff by defendants 1 and 2, to sell their products, on the website www.haute24.com. The alleged unlicensed use of the plaintiff’s photographs, therefore, asserts the plaint, amounts to infringement of the copyright of the plaintiff in the said photographs. Therefore plaintiff seeks degree of permanent injunction against the Defendants 1 and 2 and their agents, servants, etc. from reproducing, copying or publishing, via the website http://www.haute24.com. Additionally, mandatory injunction to the concerned authorities, to block the website of the Defendants which contains the infringing photographs is also sought, apart from damages and costs.
The Hon’ble Court of Delhi High Court held that the plaintiff has made out a clear prima facie case of copyright infringement. As such, it would be entitled to ex parte ad interim relief so that such infringement does not continue. The matter is now listed before the Joint Registrar for completion of pleadings.
Conclusion:
Since the photographs were taken by the hired professional photographers and the models were also hired in order to shoot the pictures, this was clearly an artistic work, and unlicensed use of these photographs by the defendants amounted to copyright infringement as also held by the Hon’ble High Court of Delhi.
[1] LOUIS VUITTON MALLETIER v. WWW.HAUTE24.COM & ORS., CS(COMM) 874/2022 & I.A. 21457/2022, I.A. 21458/2022, I.A. 21459/2022, I.A. 21462/2022
DUCTUS EDGE 