PROTECTING THE IP RIGHTS OF DIGITAL CREATORS: WAVES 2025
Oct. 12, 2025 • Suraj
Background
The first-ever World Audio Visual & Entertainment Summit (WAVES) took place at the Jio World Convention Centre, Mumbai. Organised by the government of India earlier in May, WAVES concluded as a landmark event for India’s orange economy or creative economy.
Addressing participants from over 77 countries, Prime Minister Mr. Narendra Modi emphasised the importance of the creative economy and urged the creators to ‘Create in India, create for the world’.
The orange economy is where artists and creators produce goods and services to generate wealth. It involves art, culture, heritage, intellectual property, culinary skills, music and more. Collectively, it constitutes over 3% of the world’s GDP. UNESCO declared 2021 as the year of ‘Creative Economy for Sustainable Development’. Some have suggested that the orange economy will ‘devour’ the real economy[1], which is a bit of an exaggeration, but the orange economy is certainly expected to make up over 10% of the global GDP by 2030.
Just as K-pop of Korea, anime of Japan, India’s culinary skills, food, and yoga have gained worldwide recognition. Films like Bahubali and RRR have gained praise from fans and critics all over the world. The gaming industry has witnessed an exponential rise in the Indian contribution, both as a revenue generator and a developer.
Given the potential, the orange economy represents an attractive opportunity for India to exert its soft and hard power in the world. To do so, mere strategic investment is not enough; the security and peace of mind that artists require must also be ensured. Particularly when talking about the digital content creators, it becomes pertinent to address the legal IP challenges they face, the remedies available to them, and the reforms required for India to achieve the desired results.
Common IP Issues Faced by Digital Creators
The dawn of the internet has democratised the career to become a digital content creator. While the first generation of creators posted content as a hobby, today, anyone with a basic internet connection and a creative flair can monetise their work.
As the internet is ageing, it has started to face similar problems that were once faced by the traditional literary and cinematography sectors. The difference now is that those problems travel far, fast, and the regulatory guidelines are still catching up. In this article, we attempt to go over common inconveniences a digital creator faces, which, if mitigated, can help in achieving the goals of WAVES 2025.
Digital content creators face copyright issues for using music, video clips, and memes of the original creators. Platforms like Instagram and TikTok have secured bulk music licenses, allowing users to freely use the elements that they do not own. This works well within a particular app, but the same media cannot be transferred to other platforms without the risk of getting copyright claims. This raises the critical issue as to whether the content created on a particular app truly belongs to the creator.
The solutions to some problems are:
a) giving proper credit to the original creator.
b) if using a meme, copying the idea and not the exact meme template. For example. The “distracted boyfriend” is a well-known meme. Instead of copying exactly, the creator can keep the idea alive and recreate the scene using different characters.
c) using music from the library provided by the social media apps.
d) signing a formal agreement or subscription to acquire the rights of music, literature, cinematography and more.
Understanding Fair Use
Under the Indian Copyright Act, fair use allows the creators to use copyrighted materials without permission for specific purposes like commentary, criticism, education, news reporting, or parody[2]. However, the doctrine is complex. Courts evaluate fair use based on the following factors:
- Purpose of use- commercial v. non-commercial
- Nature of the original work- factual v. creative
- Amount and substantiality used
- Effect on the market value of the original
In the digital space, the transformative use doctrine is often invoked, which essentially means that it is permissible to repurpose a work with a new meaning or to give secondary meaning to the original work. The transformative use doctrine is a feature of the USA’s Copyright Act. In India, this doctrine and the fair use disclaimer under section 107[3] are not directly applicable. Giving a simple disclaimer satisfying the elements of section 52 is a good practice.
The Rise of AI and the Concept of Authorship
Digital media creators are employing AI tools for generating elements like audio, video and literature. Setting aside the debate of whether the data used to train the AI models is copyrighted or not, the bigger concern for creators is the authorship or ownership of the generated material.
Questions like- who owns the IP rights to the AI-generated work? Is it the one who is writing the prompt, or the AI model developers, or, in fact, the source data providers all along? goes unanswered at the moment, as the regulatory guidelines are still trying to catch up. Current IP laws were made to only recognise human intellect and authorship. The judiciary is developing precedents to better protect the interests of artists. In California, for example, using a famous artist’s distinctive voice without permission has been deemed a violation of personality rights, as seen in Bette Midler v. Ford[4]. For now, creators using AI should be encouraged to be transparent about their work and label the content appropriately.
Piracy, eLearning, and the Global IP
The Internet has increased the pace of globalisation, which has in turn amplified IP risks. An online course, corporate modules, music, literature can be downloaded, pirated and sold worldwide in seconds. Cross-border IP enforcement remains less efficient than domestic enforcement. Creators must use technical safeguards like digital rights management (DRM), watermarking, and password protection.
These are just some of the common problems digital creators face when publishing content online. It is also important to note that, over time, platforms have evolved their own IP protection mechanisms. Every creator should be encouraged to read the terms and conditions, read more into the support provided by the tech platform and inquire about the dispute resolution mechanism the platform offers.
Conclusion
Emerging tools like blockchain and smart contracts offer decentralized and secure solutions, as data is stored across a network of computers. What are blockchain and smart contracts, you may ask? Let AI explain-
Blockchain is a digital ledger that records transactions in a secure, transparent, and tamper-proof way. Instead of one person or company controlling the data, it's shared across a network of computers (nodes). Smart contracts are self-executing programs stored on a blockchain. They automatically carry out actions (like releasing payment or transferring ownership) when predefined conditions are met[5].
The novel problems have novel solutions. It becomes imperative for the legislators to incorporate such emerging technologies into India’s IP and legal framework. WAVES 2025 was a step in the right direction. Recognising that digital content creators are not just entertainers but also educators, cultural commentators, and leaders is appreciable. Unlike green, blue, and yellow economies, where India joined the global conversation relatively late, the orange economic boom is happening right now. It presents a unique opportunity for India to position itself as the leading global IP policymaker. It is also high time to utilise the infrastructure that “Digital India” has created.
References
[1] https://www.forbes.com/councils/forbestechcouncil/2023/05/16/how-the-growing-creative-economy-will-soon-devour-the-real-economy/
[2] Section 52 of the Copyright Act, 1957
[3] Limitation on exclusive rights: Fair Use Section 107 of the US Copyright Act, 1976
[4] Midler v. Ford Motor Co., 849 F.2d 460 (9th Cir. 1988)
[5] Labelling the AI-generated definition of “Blockchain & Smart Contract” for demonstrating the ideal practice.