Understanding Intellectual Property Rights

• Intellectual property rights refer to the allowance of owners to earn a profit from using productive assets.
• Property rights include land and physical assets, as well as intangible assets like ideas/inventions ranging from clothing to musical scores.
• Patents, copyrights, and trademarks are statutory forms of intellectual property (IP).
• Intellectual property law is designed to incentivize value creation by the development of new ideas/inventions, as well as provide public access.

Nature of Intellectual Property

• Intangibility distinguishes IP from other forms of property.
• An IPR owner has a type of property that can be used, subject to conditions, and can take legal action against unauthorized use of their invention.
• IP owners have the right to perform certain functions related to their work/product (exclusive rights to produce, copy, and market the work).
• Designs can be protected under the Design Act and incorporated into a trademark (common ground between patent and industrial design as well as copyright).
• After the first sale by the IP right holder, the right ceases, and they are not entitled to stop further movement of those goods.
• Intellectual property rights are in continuous development, adding new items to the scope of IPR as technology advances.

WIPO

• The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) is a global forum for intellectual property services, policy, information, and cooperation.
• WIPO is a self-funding agency of the United Nations, with 193 member states.
• WIPO's mission is to lead the development of a balanced and effective international IP system that enables innovation and creativity.
• WIPO provides a policy forum to shape international IP rules, global services to protect IP across borders and resolve disputes, and technical infrastructure to connect IP systems and share knowledge.
• WIPO facilitates cooperation/capacity-building programs, so countries can use IP for economic, social, and cultural development, and serves as a world reference source for IP information.

The Trade and Merchandise Marks Act, 1958

• This provided for the registration and better protection of trademarks and prevented the use of fraudulent marks on merchandise.
• In 1999, it was replaced by The Trade Marks Act, 1999.
• Trademarks are words, phrases, symbols, or designs that distinguish the source of goods from others.
• An aim is to ensure India's adherence to the TRIPS agreement (Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights).

The World Trade Organization (WTO)

• The World Trade Organization (WTO) is an intergovernmental organization that regulates international trade with cooperation from the United Nations System.
• Governments use the WTO to establish, revise, and enforce rules governing international trade (operations began January 1, 1995).
• A purpose of the WTO is to reduce tariffs and other barriers to trade.
• The headquarters are located in Geneva, Switzerland.
• The TRIPS Agreement requires member countries to make patents available for any inventions in all fields of technology without discrimination.
• Patents must meet tests of novelty, inventiveness, and industrial applicability.
• Patent rights are enjoyable without discrimination based on the place of origin.

Trademark Law Changes

• Service marks were newly protected through registration.
• Graphic representations, shapes, and combinations of colors were added to the definition of trademark.
• The period of registration was increased from 7 years to 10 years.
• India enacted the Geographical Identification of Goods (Registration and Protection) Act 1999 for registration and better protection of G.I. (Basmati rice, Darjeeling tea, Alphonso mangoes, Malabar Pepper, Hyderabadi Grapes).

The Copyright Act, 1957

• The Copyright Act protects original literary, dramatic, musical, and artistic works, as well as cinematograph films and sound recordings from unauthorized uses.
• The Copyright Act (Amendment) was notified by the Indian government on March 30, 2021, and amends the Copyright Rules 2013.

The Copyright Rules, 2013

• These rules provide statutory licenses for cover versions, broadcasting of literary/musical works, and sound recording/compulsory licenses for unpublished works withheld from the public for the disabled.
• The rules cover registration of Copyright Societies/Performer's Right Societies, the storage of transient copies, as well as orgs working for the benefit of persons with disabilities.
• The draft amendment made public for the opinion in 2019 means that the 'copyright board' will be replaced by an 'appellate board'.
• The Intellectual Property Appellate Board (IPAB) was established by the Indian Government on September 15, 2003, for hearing and resolving appeals against the registrar.

Patent Act of 1970

• The Patents Act, 1970, originally enforced in 1972, governs patents in India.
• The Office of the Controller General of Patents, Designs and Trademarks (CGPDTM) is responsible for the Indian Patent Act.
• Patentees/licensees were supposed to submit a statement of commercial working each annum, but now the Revised Rules of 2020 will ease this.