Skip to main content
Indian Kanoon - Search engine for Indian Law
Document Fragment View
Matching Fragments
"7. We have considered the submissions of both the parties
and carefully gone through the material available on record.
In the present case, it is not in dispute that in assessee's own
case, identicle issue has been decided by the Hon'ble
jurisdictional High Curt and Their Lordships in the judgment
dated 15.10.011 while deciding the ITA No.2808/2005 &
Ors.,observed in paras 20 to 25 as under:
"20. Having regard to the above said definition of
'royalty', we have to consider the contents of software
license agreement entered into by non-resident with
Samsung Electronics and also respondents in the case
represented by Sri Ganesh, learned senior counsel and
Sri Aravind Dattar, wherein it is a case of purchase, sale
or distribution or otherwise of the off-the-shelf software.
It is described as a 'software license agreement',
wherein it is averred that customer accepts an
individual, non-transferable and non-exclusive license to
use the licensed software program(s) program(s) on the
terms and conditions enumerated in the agreement. It
is further averred that the customer - Samsung
Electronics shall protect confidential information and
shall not remove any copyright, confidentiality or other
proprietary rights provided by the non-resident.
However, what is granted under the said license is only
license to use the software for internal business without
having any right for making any alteration or reverse
engineering or creating sub-licenses. What is
transferred under the said license is the license to use
the software and copyright continue to be with the
nonresident as per the agreement. Even as per the
ITA No.802 & 804/Bang/2011
agreement entered into with the other distributors as
also the end-user license agreement, it is clear that the
distributor would get exclusive non-transferable license
within the territory for which he is appointed and he has
got right to distribute via resellers the Software, upon
payment of the licenses set forth in Exhibit A to the
agreement only to End Users pursuant to a valid
Actuate shrinkwrap or other Actuate license agreement
and except as expressly set forth in the said agreement,
distributor may not rent, lease, loan, sell or otherwise
distribute the Software the Documentation or any
derivative works based upon the Software or
Documentation in whole or in part. Distributor shall not
reverse engineer, decompile, or otherwise attempt to
derive or modify the source code for the Software.
Distributor shall have no rights to the Software other
than the rights expressly set forth in the agreement.
Distributor shall not modify or copy any part of the
Software or Documentation. Distributor may not use
sub-distributors for further distribution of the Software
and Documentation without the prior consent of
Actuate. What is charged is the license fee to be paid by
the Distributor of the Software as enumerated in Exhibit
A to the agreement. Further, Clause 6.01 of the
agreement dealing with title states that the Distributor
acknowledges that Actuate and its suppliers retain all
right, title and interest in and to the original, and any
copies (by whomever produced), of the Software or
Documentation and ownership of all patent copyright,
trademark, trade secret and other intellectual property
rights pertaining thereto, shall be and remain the sole
property of Actuate. Distributor shall not be an owner of
any copies of, or any interest in, the Software, but
rather is licensed pursuant to the Agreement to use and
distribute such copies. Actuate represents that it has
the right to enter into the Agreement and grant the
licenses provided therein and confidentiality is
protected. Therefore, on reading the contents of the
respective agreement entered into by the respondents
with the nonresident, it is clear that under the
agreement, what is transferred is only a license to use
the copyright belonging to the non-resident subject to
the terms and conditions of the agreement as referred
to above and the non-resident supplier continues to be
the owner of the copyright and all other intellectual
property rights. It is well settled that copyright is a
negative right. It is an umbrella of many rights and
license is granted for making use of the copyright in
respect of shrink wrapped software/off-the-shelf
software under the respective agreement, which
authorizes the end user i.e., the customer to make use
of the copyright software contained in the said software,
which is purchased off the shelf or imported as shrink
wrapped software and the same would amount to
transfer of part of the Copyright and transfer of right to
use the copyright for internal business as per the terms
ITA No.802 & 804/Bang/2011
and conditions of the agreement. Therefore, the
contention of the learned senior counsel appearing for
the respondents that there is no transfer of copyright or
any part thereof under the agreements entered into by
the respondent with the nonresident supplier of
software cannot be accepted.