The Concept of Originality under the Copyright Law

Author – Aashi Jain, Student at National Law University and Judicial Academy

BEST CITATION – Aashi Jain, The Concept of Originality under the Copyright Law, INDIAN JOURNAL OF LEGAL REVIEW (IJLR), 3 (1) OF 2023, PG. 751-755, ISSN – 2583-2344.

Abstract

Originality in works protected by copyright is a requirement of every copyright regime in existence. The definition of “original” as it is generally understood is “new” or “not done before.” There has been more than one ideology that has attempted to define “originality,” but there isn’t a clear-cut, universal definition of the term and hence various doctrines have been introduced. The researcher in this article tries to talk about the concept of originality and its application in different jurisdictions. However, the researcher also believes that while giving copyright the standard set for originality should not be way too high so that it becomes difficult to get the right nor shall it be too low so that anyone by making a few modifications qualify for the copyright protection as this will only lead to the less qualified works. Hence, it is utterly important that a balance between the two is done so as to maintain decorum.

Keywords: Copyright, producer, original, doctrine, creative