Delhi HC asks Meta to explain its access policy on copyright management tool

“Why does everybody not have access to it then? It is like giving the key to the robber and not to the owner of the house,” Justice Bhambhani remarked

The Delhi high court on Wednesday told Meta to explain the criteria to grant users access to its copyright management tool that lets people protect and manage their original content on Facebook and Instagram.

A bench of Justice Anup Jairam Bhambhani was hearing a petition by a content creator Mohit Kumar (Reuters)

A bench of Justice Anup Jairam Bhambhani was hearing a petition by a content creator Mohit Kumar who complained that some people downloaded his content and used their access to Meta Rights Tool to claim copyright over his videos.

Kumar said he could not have claimed copyright over the videos because Meta hadn’t given him access to the tool.

“Why does everybody not have access to it then? It is like giving the key to the robber and not to the owner of the house,” Justice Bhambhani remarked.

The court made the observation in a suit filed by Kumar, an Indian e-commerce and AI business coach who creates educational content on social media under the handle “Rise with Mohit”.

Kumar said he applied for access to the tool thrice, but his applications were rejected without clear reasons, while individuals with only a few hundred followers appeared to have secured access.

He further argued that fraudulent copyright strikes could result in a genuine creator’s account being taken down overnight, wiping out years of work, monetisation, brand collaborations and business opportunities.

Meta’s counsel submitted that the fraudulent strikes issued against Kumar were reversed and that content removed pursuant to those strikes had been reinstated.

The court, however, issued summons in Kumar’s suit and listed the matter for September 24.

It observed that the issue arose in several cases involving content creators and therefore warranted closer scrutiny.

“There are some chinks in the armour, some loopholes have been noticed. We better sort it out,” the court remarked.

The court’s direction came days after it agreed to examine on September 24 whether social media platforms can suspend or delete user accounts solely on the basis of copyright strikes.

The same judge is considering the issue in a petition filed by content creator Saurabh Maurya, whose Instagram account was suspended following a copyright strike that was subsequently found to be false.