| India provides protection to Intellectual Property Rights in accordance with its obligations under the TRIPS Agreement of the WTO. The importance of intellectual property in India is well established at all levels- statutory, administrative and judicial.
India has well-established administrative mechanism for enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights. Police officers are empowered to take action against the infringement of IPRs in case of pirated and counterfeit products. Cases of infringement of IPRs are tried in the judicial courts. Indian Intellectual Property Rights Laws also provide for appeals in the judicial courts of the administrative decisions relating to Intellectual Property Rights. The Intellectual Property Rights protected under various statues in India are as follows:- • Patents 1. India carried out first amendment in the Patents Act in 1999 and introduced exclusive marketing rights and mail box facility for inventions relating to chemical and pharmaceutical products. India introduced these transitory provisions as India had availed of the transition period available till 01 January 2005 to developing countries in introducing product patent protection to all areas. Detailed information about the Indian Patents Act is available at the website of Controller of Patents, Designs and Trademarks at The Patents Act 1970 The Patents (Amendment) Act 1999 The Patents (Amendment) Act 2002 The Patents (Amendment) Act 2005
Copyrights and related rights The copyright law has been amended periodically to keep pace with changing requirements. The recent amendment to the copyright law, which came into force in May 1995, has ushered in comprehensive changes and brought the copyright law in line with the developments in satellite broadcasting, computer software and digital technology. The amended law has made provisions for the first time, to protect performer’s rights as envisaged in the Rome Convention. Several measures have been adopted to strengthen and streamline the enforcement of copyrights. These include the setting up of a Copyright Enforcement Advisory Council, training programmes for enforcement officers and setting up special policy cells to deal with cases relating to infringement of copyrights. Department of Secondary & Higher Education, Ministry of Human Resources Development A Handbook of Indian Copyrights Act http://education.nic.in/copyright.asp Indian Copyright Act 1957 http://indiacode.nic.in/fullact1.asp?tfnm=195714 Trademarks Application for registration of a trademark should be filed with the trademark registry. Trademark is registered after publication in the trademarks journal to invite opposition and after further examination. Registration is not must for protection, however, it is mandatory for taking action against infringement. Registration is valid for an initial period of ten years and can be renewed for further period of ten years. Police officers are empowered and seized without warrant the counterfeit goods and machinery used to commit the offence. Penalties ranging from six months to three years and fines have been prescribed in the Act for trademarks violations. Further details regarding trademarks protection are available at the website of Controller of Patents, Designs and Trademarks Trademarks Act 1999 Trademarks Rules 2002 Geographical indications A geographical indication may be registered with the Controller General of Patents, Designs and Trademarks for all goods originating in a definite territory of a country, or a region or locality in that territory. The Geographical Indications Act provides for additional protection of higher level to goods notified by the Central Government. Registration of a geographical indication is for ten years with possible renewal for further ten-year periods. Further details regarding geographical indications protection are available at the website of Controller of Patents Trademarks and Designs http://ipindia.nic.in/ipr/gi/geo_ind.htm The Geographical Indications of Goods (Registration and Protection) Act 1999 The Geographical Indications of Goods (Registration and Protection) Rules 2002
Protection of Plant varieties New plant varieties could be registered under this Act for Plant Breeder Rights based on the international criteria of newness, distinctiveness, uniformity and stability. The essentially derived varieties are also registered under this Act based on internationally accepted criteria. This Act also has some unique features like benefit sharing, community rights, gene funds, compulsory licensing etc. Penal provisions are also provided in this Act against infringement of Plant Breeder Rights. A Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers’ Rights Authority has been constituted to administer this Act. The Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers’ Rights rules have also been framed under this Act. Applications for plant varieties should be filed with the Authority. Department of Agriculture and Cooperation, Ministry of Agriculture, Government of India is the administrative department for implementation of this Act. Department of Agriculture and Cooperation, Ministry of Agriculture The Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers’ Rights Act 2001 Industrial Designs Independently created designs that are new or original are protected under this Act. The Act provides a right to the owner of the registered industrial design to prevent third parties not having his consent from making, selling or importing articles being or embodying a design, which is a copy or substantially a copy of the protected design when such acts are undertaken for commercial purposes. The duration of the protection is ten years. For further details, visit the website of Controller of Patents Designs and Trademarks athttp://ipindia.nic.in/ipr/design/designs.htm General Information Booklet for Applicants of Designs The Designs Rules 2001 http://ipindia.nic.in/ipr/design/des_rule.PDF The Designs (Amendment) Rules 2003 Lay out designs of integrated circuits The Act provides for exclusive rights to the registered proprietor of a layout design and also to the registered users. Applications for registration of layout designs could be filed with the Registrar. Appeals against the orders of the Registrar could be filed with the Appellate Board. The Act also provides for criminal prosecution for infringement of layout designs. The administration department for implementation of the Act is Department of information Technology, Ministry of Communications and Information Technology, Government of India.
Semiconductor Integrated Circuits Layout-Design Registry (SICLDR) SICLD Registry is located at the following address: For further information on SICLDR activities and Registration of IC Layout-Designs, contact: Dr. K.S. Chari, Registrar FAQ on Semiconductor Act Frequently Asked Question on Semiconductor Integrated Circuits Layout-Design Act, 2000 |
