The recent Bombay High Court judgement could pave the way for royalties for playing music at weddings, restaurants, and other public places by upholding the authority of Phonographic Performance Ltd (PPL) and Novex Communications Pvt Ltd to issue licences as copyright owners.

Implementing this verdict poses a challenge due to the sheer scale and geographical expanse of such events. Moreover, the verdict's scope is somewhat limited, and certain aspects remain unresolved.

G.B. Aayeer, managing director and CEO of PPL, stated, "The judgement grants PPL and Novex the authority to issue licenses independently as owners of copyright, enabling them to prevent infringement and seek remedies against unauthorized use of their copyrighted work. This ruling works against parties or entities that were using music illegally without obtaining licenses from PPL and Novex, the majority of whom belong to the hotels, pubs, and bars sector."

Aayeer added that the verdict brings clarity and legal validation to the operations of not only music licensing companies like PPL and Novex but also other music copyright owners.

Responding to Mint’s queries, Samit Garg, president of EEMA (Event and Entertainment Management Association), the apex body for the event industry in India, highlighted that the situation remains fluid due to numerous grey areas. Garg mentioned, "The Ministry of Commerce has already established a committee, led by singer Anup Jalota, to address the matter with all involved parties and establish plausible, coherent working dynamics that are acceptable to everyone. We are hopeful that this will be permanently resolved this year."

Dinesh Pednekar, partner at law firm Economic Laws Practice, pointed out that the judgment has been rendered only on the preliminary objection of whether Novex and PPL can issue licenses to third parties for the exploitation of copyright without being registered as a ‘Copyright Society’ under the Copyright Act, 1957.

Another expert, Durgesh Khanapurkar, partner at Desai & Diwanji, pointed out that the judgment does not bestow any powers on Novex or PPL that they didn’t already have. It merely addresses a trend where copyright infringers would raise a technical defense against infringement suits on the grounds that licensing companies do not have the locus.

A senior executive at a music label mentioned that powerful lobbyists within the event and hotel industries are advocating for the ability to use songs for free.

“This is a welcome move to keep a check on music not being used illegally when rights can be taken for as little as ₹10,000-15,000 for events that cost up to ₹1-2 crore," the executive said.