Polygram Records Inc & Anor v Raben Footwear Pty Ltd [1996] FCA 797

Polygram Records Inc & Anor v Raben Footwear Pty Ltd [1996] FCA 797

PolyGram USA owned the copyright in the PolyGram recordings and PolyGram Aust was the exclusive Australian licensee; the Pilz CDs embodied substantial parts of the same sound recordings and were infringing copies. Raben imported the CDs for sale and sold or offered them for sale without the applicants' licence. Through its controlling directors, Raben knew facts sufficient to appreciate that manufacturing those CDs in Australia without the copyright owner's licence would infringe sound recording copyright, so ss 102 and 103 were contravened. The infringement was flagrant because the directors were aware of the risk and failed to make proper inquiries while hoping the infringement would...

Jurisdiction
Australia
Judgment Date
06 September 1996
Procedural Posture
Copyright Infringement Proceedings / Reasons for Judgment After Hearing
Outcome
Copyright infringement established; respondent found liable in conversion and detinue; additional damages and costs awarded.
Legal Topics
['importation of Compact Discs Without Licence' 'sound Recording Copyright' 'infringing Copies' 'knowledge for Copyright Infringement' 'additional Damages' 'conversion and Detinue']
['copyright Law' 'evidence'] ['importation of Compact Discs Without Licence' 'sound Recording Copyright' 'infringing Copies' 'knowledge for Copyright Infringement' 'additional Damages' 'conversion and Detinue']

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Procedural Posture

Copyright Infringement Proceedings / Reasons for Judgment After Hearing

Legal Issues

  1. 1 ['Whether PolyGram USA owned the copyright in the PolyGram recordings and whether PolyGram Aust was the exclusive Australian licensee.' 'Whether the Pilz recordings embodied substantial parts of the PolyGram recordings and were copies for the purposes of the Copyright Act 1968.' 'Whether Raben knew, or ought reasonably to have known, that making the Pilz CDs in Australia by Raben would have constituted an infringement of sound recording copyright.' 'Whether additional damages should be awarded for flagrant infringement.']

Ratio Decidendi

PolyGram USA owned the copyright in the PolyGram recordings and PolyGram Aust was the exclusive Australian licensee; the Pilz CDs embodied substantial parts of the same sound recordings and were infringing copies. Raben imported the CDs for sale and sold or offered them for sale without the applicants' licence. Through its controlling directors, Raben knew facts sufficient to appreciate that manufacturing those CDs in Australia without the copyright owner's licence would infringe sound recording copyright, so ss 102 and 103 were contravened. The infringement was flagrant because the directors were aware of the risk and failed to make proper inquiries while hoping the infringement would...

Court Disposition

Copyright infringement established; respondent found liable in conversion and detinue; additional damages and costs awarded.

Orders

  • ['I find the respondent liable in conversion for 55 copies of the compact disc referred to in Schedule B of the statement of claim.' 'I find the respondent liable in detinue for 945 copies of the compact disc referred to in Schedule B of the statement of claim.' 'I award the applicants $15,000 by way of additional...