War on piracy - Part 1: How effective will nodal officers be in curbing the menace?

Putting an end to piracy completely is akin to eliminating shoplifting once and for all! These words of an anti-piracy expert encapsulate the harsh reality and challenges inherent in the battle against piracy. We have to live with the menace no matter how hard authorities the world over try.

Early this month, the Ministry of Information & Broadcasting issued a notification, designating nodal officers tasked with addressing complaints lodged by copyright holders concerning pirated or infringing copies of their films on the Internet. Upon receiving complaints from the copyright holder or their authorised representatives, the nodal officers are mandated to issue notifications to intermediaries, directing them to disable access to and remove the pirated links from the internet.

How effective can this step be? Adgully attempts to find an answer in this two-part series.

A good plan, but...

Experts say that it is a step in the right direction, but they are unsure of its efficacy. The current challenges faced by producers in combating piracy involve a complex process of dealing with various levels: the websites hosting pirated content, servers facilitating uploads, Internet service providers (ISPs) enabling access, and the end consumers. The traditional approach involves obtaining court orders to compel ISPs to block specific sites, which is both expensive and time-consuming. The introduction of nodal officers is seen as a positive step, potentially streamlining the process.

“It is a good plan. But we are yet to know how efficient this process is going to be, because they (the nodal officers) are going to get a lot of requests. And we don’t know if they have enough team to handle all the requests, because they have to co-ordinate with the Internet Service Providers (ISPs),” remarks Mugil Chandran of Block X Technologies, who assists producers in fighting piracy.

He adds that with these nodal officers in place, producers need not go through the laborious process of going to court and getting an order to block websites carrying pirated content. They can directly approach the nodal officers with the list of websites to be blocked.

“We obviously ask the websites to remove the pirated content. We reach out to the servers where the pirated content is uploaded. Most of the servers are in copyright-free countries, mostly Scandinavians. So, there is no support from them; even if they respond it will be delayed, and by that time the pirated content would be transferred to some other server. And the process continues,” he explains.

The only people who respond to anti-piracy experts or producers are ISPs.

“We can’t reach them (ISPs) directly without a court order. What we do as producers or anti-piracy agents is that we give a list of sites and help them with the legal process. We share the court order with the ISPs and ask them to block the site. The problem is that by the time we do that the pirates would shift to another website or server. Then again we have to obtain a court order and get that list approved by the court. It is an expensive and time-taking process. These processes get eliminated with the arrival of nodal officers. We have already raised some request with the nodal officers, till now we have not got any reply,” says Chandran.

What about the apps?

The effectiveness of these anti-piracy measures is compromised when applications remain untouched. This is relevant because a significant portion of piracy activities occurs on platforms such as Telegram. If such large file-sharing apps are taken to task, it is tantamount to upending the piracy apple-cart. But it is easier said than done!

“We are yet to find out if this will be effective with platforms like Telegram, where groups are being created and files are being shared directly. Here, there is no intermediate person; but the platform is used for sharing content. I am curious to know the nodal officers’ position on applications. That makes a big difference. This can be a big deal if the nodal officers say that they are looking at blocking apps,” says Chandran, adding that he has sent the nodal officers an enquiry on whether Telegram as a platform will be blocked or blacklisted in India.

The creators go scot-free

Another issue is that those who host the content remain unscathed.

According to Chandran, the authorities are not scrutinising anybody who hosts the content; whoever is creating or pirating content directly is being penalised, not somebody who is supporting it. “Supporting a platform where it is being shared or the person behind it is not being considered as an accomplice. Which means they are not recommending self-censorship or self-regulation,” adds Chandran.

For example, he explains, if pirated content is being uploaded on certain website or server, they are not being held accountable or directed to remove that file. The current approach to combating piracy focuses on penalising those directly involved in creating or pirating content, neglecting the accountability of supporting platforms or individuals. This issue is particularly complex when dealing with apps like Telegram, as ISPs cannot delist them. There is no clarity on this, exacerbating the challenges in addressing this aspect of piracy.

Additionally, the effectiveness of these measures is undermined when individuals employ Virtual Private Networks (VPNs). When a VPN is activated, users no longer operate with an Indian IP address. Consequently, even if an Indian ISP blocks access, its efforts become futile as the VPN allows users to bypass these restrictions, rendering the measures ineffective in preventing access to pirated content.

What producers say

Producers are sanguine about the development.

Arjun Singgh Baran and Kartk D Nishandar, Founders of GSEAMS, feel that they are very optimistic about this development. According to them, “Anything which will help us to collectively battle piracy is absolutely a step in the right direction. If implemented judiciously, it will help us address the root of the piracy issue, take action, pull down pirated content and block sites which are promoting it. It would be interesting to see how this proposed mechanism will function and how effective it will be. For instance, how will fraudulent copyright claims be addressed and how will such a dispute be resolved quickly? If a systematic way to call out and root out piracy is put into place, it will definitely help.”

This indeed is a positive development, particularly given the absence of a dedicated institutional framework for taking direct action against pirated film content beyond legal recourse under the Copyright Act and IPC sections, says producer Anand Pandit.

“With this new system, copyright holders or film producers can file a complaint along with the URL where the pirated copy is hosted and the name of the website is responsible. Nodal officers can then instruct the websites to remove such content within 48 hours,” he says.

Pandit, however, feels that while this is a step in the right direction and will provide some relief to the industry, it may not be sufficient to completely eradicate piracy. According to him, it is important to explore additional measures that require coordinated efforts among various stakeholders in the film industry and administrators to address this issue to its full extent.