Delhi High Court grants relief to Warner Bros, Netflix against rogue websites

The Delhi High Court recently issued a dynamic+ injunction in favor of Warner Bros., Netflix, Disney and other global entertainment giants in their suit against multiple rogue streaming websites accused of infringing their copyright [Warner Bros Entertainment Inc & Ors v. Doodstream.Com & Ors].

Justice Saurabh Banerjee emphasized that the mushrooming of rogue streaming websites could not be allowed to continue.

"The mushrooming of the defendants like the present types and that too by blatant and utter slavish activities with ulterior purpose(s), cannot be allowed to continue… The defendants, as also anyone like them, need to be stopped as earliest as possible, and they are required to abide by any such order passed by a Court of Law, both in the present as also in the future," the order dated August 30 stated.

The plaintiffs, comprising some of the world's largest content producers, including Warner Bros., Columbia Pictures, Disney, Netflix and others filed the suit against 45 websites to protect their copyrighted works from being illegally streamed and distributed without authorization.

The plaintiffs argued that these infringing websites were engaged in widespread piracy by illegally hosting copyrighted content and stated that despite repeated legal notices to the operators of these websites, no action was taken to remove the infringing material.

The plaintiffs requested a dynamic+ injunction to not only block these websites but also any future mirror or alphanumeric variations of the infringing domains.

In its ex-parte order, the Court cited the hydra-headed nature of these sites, emphasizing their ability to multiply and evade traditional enforcement measures.

It found that the defendant websites were infringing the plaintiffs' exclusive copyright protections under the Copyright Act of 1957.

The Court also acknowledged that the rogue websites had masked their registration details, making it difficult for the plaintiffs to trace the operators or hold them accountable.

Subsequently, the Court granted an ex-parte interim injunction, ordering the defendants to immediately cease hosting, streaming or distributing the plaintiffs' content.

It directed Internet Service Providers (ISPs) to block access to the infringing websites within 48 hours, while government entities such as the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) and the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) were instructed to ensure compliance.

The Court further granted the plaintiffs a dynamic+ injunction, which enables swift action against future mirror or alphanumeric variations of the infringing websites.

Unlike traditional injunctions that only block specific URLs, a dynamic+ injunction enables plaintiffs to target any new domains that arise after the original ones are blocked, ensuring continuous protection against copyright violations.

The matter will be heard next on January 13, 2025.

The plaintiffs were represented by advocates Saikrishna Rajagopal, Suhasini Raina, Anjali Agrawal, Mehr Sidhu and Priyanka Jaiswal.

[Read Order]