Star India Private Limited (plaintiff no.1) and Novi Digital Entertainment Pvt. Ltd. (plaintiff no.2) hold exclusive digital and television broadcasting rights for the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024, under an agreement with the International Cricket Council (ICC). The plaintiffs discovered that several rogue websites, including Stream2Watch.Pk and others, were illegally streaming or making available to the public the plaintiffs’ exclusive content (matches and highlights) without authorization, infringing their copyright and broadcast reproduction rights under Section 37 of the Copyright Act, 1957.
Procedural Background in Brief:
The suit was filed prior to the commencement of the ICC T20 World Cup 2024, seeking a permanent injunction to restrain defendants from unauthorized dissemination of the matches. On 28th May 2024, the Delhi High Court granted an ex parte ad interim injunction in favor of the plaintiffs, restraining the initial set of rogue websites and directing blocking of these websites by ISPs and domain registrars. As further rogue websites were identified, plaintiffs successfully impleaded defendants no.33 to 175. The defendants failed to file written statements within the prescribed period, and no defence was raised.
Reasoning of Court:
The Court noted that the defendants did not contest the suit, and the averments made in the plaint were deemed admitted. The Court found that the defendants' unauthorized dissemination of the ICC T20 World Cup 2024 content resulted in irreparable harm to the plaintiffs by infringing their copyrights and broadcast rights, and eroding the commercial value of these exclusive rights. The Court concluded that no trial was warranted and the suit could be decreed under Order VIII Rule 10 CPC.
Decision:
The Court passed a decree of permanent injunction restraining defendants no.1 to 11 and defendants no.33 to 175 from illegally disseminating or broadcasting plaintiffs' exclusive content through rogue websites. The plaintiffs did not press for damages, as the interim reliefs had already been satisfied.
Case Details:
Case Title: Star India Private Limited & Anr. vs. Stream2Watch.Pk & Ors.
Date of Order: 3rd March 2025
Case Number: CS(COMM) 455/2024
Neutral Citation: Not provided
Name of Court: High Court of Delhi at New Delhi
Name of Hon'ble Judge: Hon'ble Mr. Justice Amit Bansal
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