Annotated Leading Copyright Cases in Major Asian Jurisdictions

Book excerpt: In this second volume of the Applied Research Center for Intellectual Assets and the Law in Asia (ARCIALA) series, thirty-seven eminent scholars and practitioners from Asia and the United States have come together to comprehensively assess leading copyright cases from eight major Asian jurisdictions (People’s Republic of China (PRC), India, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, and Taiwan). This book contains thirty-six case reports that focus on six topics that reflect the current trends in Asian copyright law—namely, digital copyright, collective copyright (including the management of copyright and the interface between collecting societies and competition law), criminal copyright (with a discussion of criminal punishment for copyright infringement), limits to copyright (such as fair use and exhaustion), the relationship between copyright laws and other forms of protection, and choice of jurisdiction and applicable law in copyright litigation. Each case report deconstructs the legal background, facts, and rationale of the decision in a particular landmark case, and then discusses the commercial or industrial significance and application. Notably, this includes an analysis of The Hague Convention on Choice of Court Agreements and its adoption in Singapore, which is, to date, the only Asian country to have fully ratified it. Taken together, this volume presents a useful guide for copyright practitioners, professionals, lawyers, and judges alike in addition to acting as a primer for students and businessmen planning to enter Asia’s exciting world of copyright. It also serves as a handbook for policy makers, both within Asia and further afield.