Home Case Index All Cases Income Tax Income Tax + AT Income Tax - 2024 (3) TMI AT This
Forgot password New User/ Regiser ⇒ Register to get Live Demo
2024 (3) TMI 1063 - ITAT BANGALORETDS u/s 195 - liability u/s 201 and 201(1A) - non deduction of TDS payment in the nature of FTS to the NDS Ltd. UK - royalty receipts or not? - CIT(A) quashing the order of the AO relying on case of Engineering Analysis Centre of Excellence Pvt. Ltd. [2021 (3) TMI 138 - SUPREME COURT] HELD THAT:- We are of the opinion that similar issue came for consideration in assessee’s own case [2023 (12) TMI 1300 - ITAT BANGALORE] held that a copyright is an exclusive right that restricts others from doing certain acts. Computer programs are categorised as literary work under the Copyright Act. Section 14 of the Copyright Act states that a copyright is an exclusive right to do or authorise the doing of certain acts in respect of a work, including literary work. Term ‘copyright’ has to be understood in the context of the Copyright Act. The court said that by virtue of Article 12(3) of the DTAA, royalties are payments of any kind received as a consideration for "the use of, or the right to use, any copyright "of a literary work includes a computer program or software. As held that the regarding the expression "use of or the right to use", the position would be the same under explanation 2(v) of section 9(1)(vi) because there must be, under the licence granted or sales made, a transfer of any rights contained in sections 14(a) or 14(b) of the Copyright Act. Since the end-user only gets the right to use computer software under a non-exclusive licence, ensuring the owner continues to retain ownership under section 14(b) of the Copyright Act read with sub-section 14(a) (i)-(vii), payments for computer software sold/licenced on a CD/other physical media cannot be classed as a royalty. The terms of the licence in the present case does not grant any proprietory interest on the licencee and there is no parting of any copy right in favour of the licencee. It is non-exclusive non-tranferrable licence merely enabling the use of the copy righted product and does not create any interest in copy right and therefore the payment for such licence would not be in the nature of royalty as defined in DTAA. We therefore hold that the sum in question cannot be brought to tax as royalty - Decided against revenue.
|