The Delhi High Court has granted ANI a permanent injunction and the takedown of twelve videos in its copyright suit against RSY News, holding that wholesale reproduction of news videos cannot be fair dealing for the reporting of current events, while declining its claim for Rs 2 crore in damages.
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New Delhi: The Delhi High Court has decreed in favour of ANI Media Pvt. Ltd. in its copyright suit against RSY News, restraining the defendant permanently from reproducing or uploading ANI’s videos and directing the takedown of twelve infringing videos, holding that wholesale reproduction of news videos is not fair dealing [ANI Media Pvt. Ltd. v. RSY News and Google LLC].
Justice Purushaindra Kumar Kaurav passed summary judgment in the suit. RSY News did not appear despite service and did not file a written statement, and the suit was decided without its participation.
The infringement
The Court found that twelve videos uploaded between August and October 2024 on four YouTube channels, RSY News, RSY News UP, RSY News Delhi and RSY News Bihar, reproduced ANI’s content. In ten of the twelve, ANI’s footage was reproduced entirely or virtually in full, and one video reproduced more than five continuous minutes. Frame-wise comparison showed ANI logos on microphones and graphics retained, with the defendant’s marks superimposed, and some frames credited “Source: ANI”. A Coordinate Bench had granted an ex parte interim injunction in 2024, after which YouTube removed the videos.
No fair dealing, no licence
Rejecting the defence of fair dealing under Section 52 of the Copyright Act, the Court held:
“Nor can the use be regarded as fair dealing for the reporting of current events under Section 52(1)(a)(iii) of the Copyright Act. The wholesale reproduction of ten videos operates as a substitute for the plaintiff’s works.”
The only justification put forward by RSY News was a purported licence from Swami Entertainment Pvt. Ltd., asserted in its counter-notifications on YouTube. The Court held that this defence was “fanciful and not real”, as the defendant never produced the licence despite the plaintiff’s specific denial.
The directions
The Court permanently restrained RSY News and all acting on its behalf from reproducing, uploading, publishing, communicating to the public, distributing, republishing or otherwise exploiting ANI’s works without authorisation, and directed it to take down the twelve videos from all platforms, including its YouTube channels. It confirmed and made absolute the earlier interim directions to Google LLC to take down, block and disable access to the infringing URLs.
The Court declined ANI’s prayers for damages of Rs 2,00,00,500 and for a public acknowledgment of infringement, holding that the injunction and the directions for removal adequately protect the plaintiff’s rights.
Why The Fair Dealing Judgment Matters
The judgment holds that reproducing news footage in full, or near full, as a substitute for the original cannot be defended as fair dealing for reporting current events. It was decided without the defendant’s participation, and the Court did not award damages.
Case Details: ANI Media Pvt. Ltd. v. RSY News and Google LLC | CS(COMM) 1018/2024 | Before: Justice Purushaindra Kumar Kaurav | Date of judgment: September 29, 2026
Appearance: Advocate Lahar Jain appeared for the plaintiff, ANI Media Pvt. Ltd.