To keep up with the hydra-headed nature of the infringement actions of infringing domains/websites, the Delhi High Court granted a ‘Dynamic+ injunction’ to protect the Copyrighted Works of Warner Bros Entertainment (Plaintiff) as soon as they are created, to ensure that no irreparable loss is caused to the owners, as there is an imminent possibility of the Plaintiffs’ Copyrighted Works being uploaded on Infringing Websites or their newer versions immediately thereafter.
A Single Judge Bench of Justice Tejas Karia observed that the Plaintiffs are the owners of the Copyrighted Works and have made out a prima facie case for the grant of an ex parte ad interim injunction. Upon perusing the screenshots of the Infringing Websites, the Bench noted that these websites are, on a real-time basis, offering the Plaintiffs’ Copyrighted Works for viewing and downloading without consent or a valid license, resulting in financial losses to the Plaintiffs.
The Bench found that the balance of convenience lies in favour of the Plaintiffs and that irreparable injury would be caused if an injunction is not granted, emphasising that the need for immediate relief is particularly pressing to prevent significant financial losses. Accordingly, while granting a ‘Dynamic+ injunction’, the Bench allowed the Plaintiffs to implead any mirror, redirect, or alphanumeric variations of the injuncted websites that provide new means of accessing the same primary infringing content by applying under Order I Rule 10 of the CPC.
The Bench also said that if any website, which is not primarily an infringing website, is blocked pursuant to the present Order, it shall be permitted to approach the Court by filing an Affidavit that it does not intend to engage in any unauthorised or illegal dissemination of the Plaintiffs’ Copyrighted Works. In such a situation, the Court would consider modifying the injunction as the facts and circumstances so warrant.
Briefly, the Plaintiffs, who are members of the Motion Picture Association, Inc. and/or the Alliance for Creativity and Entertainment, are engaged in the creation, production, and distribution of cinematographic films. The Plaintiffs asserted that they possess all rights under Section 14(d) of the Copyright Act, 1957, as authors, first owners, or exclusive distributors of these works in India, which are entitled to protection under Sections 13 and 40 of the 1957 Act.
Accordingly, the Plaintiffs filed a suit against the Defendants (Infringing Websites) for indulging in online piracy by communicating to the public, hosting, streaming, reproducing, and making available for download the Plaintiffs’ Copyrighted Works without authorisation. Despite the issuance of take-down notices dated December 05, 2025, the infringement continued, which, according to the Plaintiffs, constitutes an infringement under Sections 51(a)(i), 51(a)(ii), and 51(b) of the 1957 Act.
The suit also impleads Domain Name Registrars, Internet Service Providers, and Government departments, for the limited purposes of suspending the websites, blocking access, and issuing necessary notifications, respectively.
Appearances:
Advocates Siddharth Chopra, Raghav Goyal, Mehr. Sidhu, A. Moin, and Aditya Singh Thakur, for the Plaintiff
Advocates Yash Raj and Geetanjali Vishwanathan, for the Defendant
