Madras HC dismisses Netflix' plea against actor Dhanush in copyright infringement issue
Chennai, Jan 28 (PTI): The Madras High Court on Tuesday dismissed an application filed by Los Gatos, an Indian entity of OTT platform Netflix, which sought to reject actor Dhanush's plaint over alleged copyright infringement by well-known actor Nayanthara, her husband Vignesh Sivan and others, at the preliminary stage itself.
Justice Abdul Quddhose dismissed the application filed by Los Gatos and posted to February 5, further hearing of the application filed by Dhanush's production house Wunderbar, seeking interim injunction against Los Gatos and others.
In his application, Dhanush had submitted that he produced a Tamil film "Naanum Rowdy Dhaan" a few years ago. Some of the behind-the-scene footage from the film were used unauthorizedly in the making of Nayanthara's documentary "Nayanthara: Beyond the Fairytale", he alleged. The documentary was aired on Netflix.
Dhanush said that since Netflix's office was in Mumbai, which was outside the jurisdiction of the Madras HC, he had moved an application seeking leave to sue the OTT player in this court, which was allowed. Aggrieved, Netflix filed the present application to revoke the order, granting leave to sue.
Netflix contended that the plaintiff in this case had obtained leave to sue only against Los Gatos and because the office was situated outside the jurisdiction of this court. The plaintiff ought to have obtained leave against all the defendants, Netflix added.
Applications filed by Netflix seeking revocation of leave and rejection of plaint were dismissed by the High Court.
Netflix's contentions were that the suit ought to have been filed in Kancheepuram as plaintiff's registered office is situated there and leave was not specifically sought for that part of cause of action that arose outside of the Madras High court's jurisdiction. Thus it sought leave to be revoked.
Rejection of Plaint was sought for on the ground that there is no urgency as the documentary is already released. Therefore the plaintiff ought to have gone for mandatory pre suit mediation.
The High Court did not agree with the plaintiff and both the applications were dismissed.
In his order, the judge said at this preliminary stage, when the first respondent/plaintiff (Wunderbar Films Private Limited) has prima facie satisfied this Court that there was an urgent need for obtaining interim reliefs, the question of rejecting the plaint for non compliance of pre-suit mediation does not arise.
Listing out the reasons, the judge said, " this Court is of the considered view that since a part of cause of action arose within the jurisdiction of this Court, this Court had rightly granted leave to the Plaintiff (Wunderbar) to institute the suit against the applicant/fifth defendant (Los Gatos) by exercising its power under Clause 12 of the Letters Patent."
"Since adequate averments have been made in the plaint for seeking urgent interim reliefs by the first respondent/ plaintiff (Wunderbar) without exercising pre-suit mediation, this Court, at this preliminary stage, cannot reject the plaint for non-compliance of pre-suit mediation by the first respondent/plaintiff (Wunderbar)," the court said.
The judge said this court, after giving careful consideration to the averments contained in the plaint, which includes the cause of action, was of the considered view that Wunderbar has rightly sought leave of this Court and has also rightly obtained leave to institute the suit against Los Gatos since they were having their registered office at Mumbai which was outside the jurisdiction of this Court.
It was settled law that as long as any infringing material remains on air and for each moment that material continues to be screened, it will dilute the rights of the copyright holder and was a continuous cause of action.
Though Los Gatos contends that the cause of action for the suit arose in the year 2020 itself as seen from the plaint, the said contention cannot be accepted by this Court at this stage when admittedly the documentary "Nayanthara: Beyond the Fairy Tale" was released by Netflix only on November 18, 2024.
It was clear from the plaint averments that only due to the urgent necessity to seek interim reliefs, Wunderbar did not go for pre-suit mediation under Section 12A of the Commercial Courts Act, the judge added.
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IPL: BCCI bans "unauthorised" entries in players' rooms; warns of honey traps, security risk
New Delhi (PTI): Warning of potential "honey traps, legal liability and security risks", the BCCI has banned unauthorised visitors from the hotel rooms of players, support staff and team officials in the IPL after incidents of "misconduct and protocol violations" were flagged by the Board's Anti-Corruption Unit.
In an elaborate advisory for the 10 IPL franchises, the BCCI has said that written authorisation from the team managers would be a must for guests to have access to the players' and officials' rooms.
"The advisory has been issued in light of certain incidents observed during ongoing season and is intended to reinforce the standards of professionalism, discipline, security awareness and protocol compliance expected from all stakeholders associated with IPL," BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia said in a communication to the CEOs of the franchises, a copy of which is in possession of PTI.
"It has come to the attention of the BCCI that certain incidents of misconduct and protocol violation have occurred involving players, support staff and team officials during the course of the current IPL season.
"These incidents if left unaddressed, carry the potential to cause significant reputational harm to the tournament, the franchise concerned and the BCCI as the Governing Body. They may further expose individuals and franchises to legal liability and security risks of serious nature," he went on to warn in the preamble of the document.
The Board noted that certain players and support staff members have permitted unauthorised persons to access their hotel rooms without the knowledge or approval of the concerned Team Manager.
"In a number of instances, Team Manager was entirely unaware of the presence of such visitors. The practice is strictly prohibited with immediate effect," the notification ordered.
All players and support staff have now been given a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) that needs to be followed for the duration of the tournament.
"No guest shall be escorted to private hotel rooms unless Team Manager has specifically authorised the same in writing. The BCCI draws attention to all franchises to the well documented risks of targeted compromise and honey trapping that pervade high profile sporting environments.
"The possibility of incidents giving rise to serious legal allegations, including those under applicable Indian laws on sexual misconduct cannot be discounted. IPL franchises must remain vigilant and proactive in mitigating such risks at all times," the Board stated.
It also banned players and support staff from leaving team hotels at "irregular hours" without informing their designated Security Liaison Officer (SLO) and Team Integrity Officer (TIO).
Saikia said periodic checks might be conducted by the BCCI or the IPL Operations Team to ensure compliance with the guidelines and breaches would invite sanctions ranging from financial penalties to suspension or disqualification of the concerned player, support staff and team official.
Owners barred from player interaction during games
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The document also highlighted breaches by unspecified team owners, alleging that they have not maintained the sanctity of Players' And Match Officials Access (PMOA).
"Specifically instances have been observed of IPL franchises owners attempting to communicate with, approach, hug, or otherwise physically interact with players during live match situations.
"Such conduct however well-intentioned, directly contravenes established protocol and may constitute interference with team dynamics and match proceedings," the Board asserted.
The BCCI has therefore banned owners from interacting with the players while a match is on.
"IPL franchise owners and their representatives are strictly prohibited from communicating with or physically accessing players or team officials in the dugout, dressing room or playing area during course of the match, except through designated and approved channels.
"All franchise owner level access to restricted zones must strictly conform to the PMOA Protocol as communicated by the IPL operations divisions. Any deviation shall be treated as serious violation."
Prohibition of Vaping
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Rajasthan Royals skipper Riyan Parag was seen vaping in the dressing room balcony during a match, causing a uproar. Without naming Riyan, Saikia said indulging in a banned activity as per Indian law will not be tolerated by the Board.
"It is pertinent to note that vapes and electronic cigarettes is prohibited under applicable Indian Law.
"Any individual found engaging in such conduct within tournament premises is not only violating BCCI and IPL regulations but may also be committing a cognisable offence under applicable statutory framework," he said.
"Accordingly the use of vapes, e-cigarettes, and all prohibited substances is strictly banned within all IPL tournament venues, including dressing rooms, dugouts, team hotels and practice facilities."
