What is a statutory licence for cover versions under Section 31C

Question

I want to record and release my own version of a popular song and need to know if I require permission from the original owner. Specifically, I want to know how Copyright Act, 1957, Section 31C applies to a situation like mine and what the intellectual property position in India actually is. If there is a deadline I should be aware of, I need to know that now.

MyVakeel Legal Desk · Accepted Answer

What is a statutory licence for cover versions under Section 31C is governed in India primarily by Copyright Act, 1957, Section 31C and Copyright Rules, 2013, Rule 24. Outcomes in cover version royalty india disputes depend heavily on documentation, so check what you can actually evidence as you read.

Section 31C of the Copyright Act, 1957, introduced by the 2012 amendment, allows any person to make a 'cover version' sound recording of a literary, dramatic or musical work already recorded, without seeking the original owner's permission, provided the statutory conditions are met and a fixed royalty is paid.

The person intending to make the cover version must give prior notice to the copyright owner in the manner prescribed under Rule 24 of the Copyright Rules, 2013, and pay royalties in advance at the rate fixed by the Appellate Board (now the Commercial Court/IPD), calculated per minute of recording or part thereof, before making the recording.

The cover version cannot be made until five calendar years have elapsed since the end of the year in which the original sound recording was made, and it must not include any alteration to the original literary or musical work not necessitated by the technical requirements of making the sound recording, and it must not be an advertisement.

The label of the cover version must not mislead the public as to its identity — it must clearly state that it is a cover version and give due credit to the original work and its author, and the maker cannot sell more copies than the number stated in the notice given to the owner.

What this means for you: 1) Wait until five years have elapsed since the original sound recording; 2) Give prior written notice and pay advance royalty to the copyright owner; 3) Clearly label the recording as a cover version giving credit to the original; 4) Avoid unauthorised alteration of the underlying literary or musical work.

Where the facts are disputed, what usually decides a cover version royalty india matter is the paper trail — dated complaints, acknowledgments and written replies under Copyright Act, 1957, Section 31C. You can post the details on the MyVakeel forum for a practising advocate to review, or book a paid consultation with a Bar Council verified lawyer in intellectual property.