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Sony
Entertainment Television suffered a setback today after
the courts ruled against it in a copyright violations case.
According to the court ruling, Taal Communications, promoters
of the weekly matchmaking show Swayamvar, which is
slated for launch on national broadcaster Doordarshan, have
been given a lead time before Sony can launch its own blockbuster
marriage reality show Shubh Vivaah.
As per information available, the ruling states that if
Taal launches Swayamvar on or before 30 June, Sony
will have to wait at least two months before it can launch
Shubh Vivaah. However, if Swayamvar is not launched
within this period, Sony is free to launch its own show
immediately.
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| Madhuri
Dixit: Matchmaking will have to wait |
Taal, promoted by Anil Gupta, a former consultant with Zee,
and actor politician Vinod Khanna had originally planned
to kick off Swayamvar on DD1 last November.
When Sony announced on 28 August its own plans to launch
Shubh Vivaah with former queen bee of Bollywood Madhuri
Dixit as the host, Taal went to court. At the heart of its
case were issues of copyright, originality and ownership
of intellectual property.
Taal claimed that the original concept belonged to it and
that it had made several presentations to the channel over
the past three years without any response after which they
approached DD and got approval.
Sony Entertainment CEO Kunal Dasgupta, when contacted, expressed
disappointment at the judgment contending that the idea
of marriage could not be copyrighted. He however, made clear
that the show would ultimately go on air, adding that having
waited seven months, he could wait another four.
Manish Popat, COO, UTV television content & the show's producer,
said: "I think it's a fair judgment. At least it brings
clarity to the issue rather than leaving things hanging,
as is the normal case in India as far as legal matters are
concerned. "
Popat also expressed doubts over Taal's ability to launch
Swayamvar in the time given by the court.
One reason for the "speedy" ruling could be that both sides
had lined up legal luminaries to fight the case. Representing
Sony was Ashok Desai while Kapil Sibal and Pravin Anand
spoke on the part of Taal.
Taal, according to industry sources had asked for a private
settlement, to get the issue resolved at the earliest, which
Dasgupta was not willing to accede to. Sources indicate
Sony was willing to pay Rs 10 million as a settlement but
Taal wanted Rs 150 million. At the time of writing, indiantelevision.com
could not ascertain whether any compensation had been
demanded by Taal for delays in the launch of Swayamvar as
damages. Also, it was unclear whether demands had additionally
been made for damage to Taal's and co-promoter Vinod Khanna's
reputation.
Keeping
the dispute between Sony and Taal aside, the ruling could
well prove to be a landmark as far as IPR is concerned.
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