Journal of Intellectual Property Rights
Vol 18, September 2013, pp 457-464

Piracy in the Internet Age
Nikita Hemmige†
ILS Law College, Law College Rd, Pune 411 004, India
Received 17 December 2012, revised 12 August 2013
The Internet has created boundary-less territories and has helped in evolving a unique method to share and transfer information, growth of e-commerce and in creating a global platform for all nations and its citizens. Online piracy is a major flipside to this development. Rampant intellectual property (IP) infringements by way of unlawful reproduction and unmonitored downloads is a matter of concern. It is significant to take note of the laws that various countries have enacted and enforced in order to curb or at least regulate online piracy and related activities. Further, though the Copyright Act, 1957 and Information Technology Act, 2000 in India deal with certain facets of piracy, they do not conclusively deal with this menace. It is the need of the hour for India to draft and enforce laws which will address the current problem and also take into consideration the technological advancements that are likely to give rise to more of such complex issues. Formulating such a law in the near future will be a welcome change and will definitely give India the IP advantage.
Keywords: Online piracy, copyright infringement, jurisdictional barriers, Internet laws, intellectual property

The Internet has become the first port of call for anyone in search of information, ideas or simple contact with like-minded people. Unparalleled opportunities also exist through social network sites, blogs, wikis and other interactive facilities for individuals to make information public about themselves, exchange opinions and share knowledge on every question under the sun.1
Infringement of copyright on the Internet has become a common phenomenon.