MUMBAI: In a bid to prevent piracy of its recently released film Singham, Reliance Big Pictures has obtained a John Doe order from the Delhi High Court that will restrain screening of the film on various platforms.
The Internet Service Providers (ISPs), in turn, blocked entire domains and the government followed later by making file sharing sites inaccessible
A John Doe order is an injunction used internationally against unidentified prospective infringers for releasing movies without licence.
"This order will help us take action against cable operators, websites and even buyers of pirated copies of the film. It will also allow us to serve notice and take action against anyone who is found infringing our movie‘s copyright," said Big Pictures Vice President (Music and Anti Piracy) Sanjay Tandon.
According to Tandon, they had given a list of 35 websites that have been playing Singham illegally for a long time.
As the block came into force on 20 July, users of Airtel Broadband, BSNL and MTNL Triband have found several sites including MediaFire.com, Megaupload.com, Rapidshare. com, Hotfile.com, Fileserve. com and Filesonic.com inaccessible.
With the John Doe order in effect, offenders will face a two-year jail term and a fine of Rs 50,000.
