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India: Covid -19 Update: Extension of Deadlines to May 18, 2020
The Indian Intellectual Property Office (IPO), vide public notice date May 4, 2020, has extended the due dates as follows: For cases with deadlines falling between March 25 and May 17, 2020: New...
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WINES AND SPIRITS IN THE REALM OF GEOGRAPHICAL INDICATIONS (GIs)
Most of the times the quality of certain goods such as agricultural produce, foods and spirits, are valued by customers primarily because of the exceptional natural conditions of their region or...
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THE EVOLUTION AND GROWTH OF THE CONCEPT OF TRANSBORDER REPUTATION IN INDIA
IntroductionTrans-border reputation can be understood to be present when “a product and its trade name transcend the physical boundaries of the geographical region and acquire a trans-border or...
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Tracing the development of "intermediary liability" in India
IntroductionIn the present scenario, the astronomical growth of the Internet and the easy access to everyone has led to an upsurge in online shopping and users on social media platforms, owing to...
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COVID-19 UPDATE: Deadline of May 18, 2020 fixed by the IP Office for all...
On May 11, 2020, the Delhi High Court suspended the deadline of May 18, 2020, fixed by the office of the Controller General of Patents, Designs and Trade Marks (CGPDTM) for all IP filings, completion...
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IP Jurisprudence for a Cause
“Justice is the constant and perpetual will to allot to every man his due”, a well-contended phrase by one of the most prominent Roman jurists , Domitus Ulpian is capable of elucidating the evolving...
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INDIA: COVID-19 UPDATE: IPO fixes new due date of June 1, 2020 for all...
The Indian Intellectual Property Office (IPO) has fixed June 1, 2020 as the new due date for all matters where the original due date was falling between March 15 to May 17, 2020. The deadline for all...
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Naked Licensing and Quality Control
Trademark licensing is the process of authorizing a Registered user to use the trademark of the Registered Proprietor for a specified period of time and on mutually agreed terms laid down in the...
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INDIA: Covid-19 update: High Court stays IPO’s notice setting June 1...
On May 21, 2020, the Delhi High Court stayed (until further orders) the operation of the two public notices dated May 18, 2020 and May 20, 2020 issued by the IPO, which fixed the new deadline of June...
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ANALYZING THE SIGNIFICANCE OF TRADE MARKS IN THE AUTOMOBILE SECTOR
INTRODUCTION“Within every brand is a product, but not every product is a brand”, a highly pragmatic phrase by David Ogilvy is capable of encapsulating the dominance of trade marks in shaping consumer...
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Search Engine Optimization and Trademarks
All business owners, brand owners, manufacturers, service providers run websites showcasing their products and services under a range of brands. In this digital era, websites have become an...
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WIPO PROOF: WIPO Introduces New Business Service - Tamper-Proof Evidence of...
On May 27, 2020, the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) launched a new online business service, WIPO PROOF, that provides tamper-proof evidence of the existence at a point in time of any...
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UNDERSTANDING THE PROVISION OF WELL-KNOWN TRADE MARKS IN THE INDIAN CONTEXT
With change in societal behaviour i.e. a gigantic leap towards social media marketing and innovative advertising ideas, the influence of trade marks on people along with infringement of famous trade...
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Trade marks in the realm of the “Entertainment” industry
“We aren't in an information age, we are in an entertainment age.”-Tony Robbins, entrepreneur, author, philanthropist, and life and business strategist[1]The term “entertainment industry” predominantly...
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India: 'Small Entity' criteria for classification under various IP Enactments...
Various IP enactments, including the Patents Act, Trade Marks Act and Designs Act, provide for a discounted official fee for ‘small entities’ that are defined as entities meeting the criteria of...
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Jurisdiction of the Competition Commission of India in Patent matters
Monsanto Holdings Pvt. Ltd. and Ors. vs. Competition Commission of India and Ors.[1]About the Petitioners & the subject matterThe Monsanto Company (hereinafter referred to as “Monsanto”) is engaged...
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Genericide: Death of a Trademark
A vacuum flask? Thermos. Separable fastener? Zipper. Mobile garbage bin? Dumpster. Conveyor transport device? Escalator. The answers to each of the above questions were once distinctive trademarks and...
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INDIA: COVID-19 update: IPO confirms suspension of all deadlines until...
The IPO has issued a Public Notice clarifying that the timelines for completion of various proceedings, filing of documents, payment of fees, etc. falling due after March 15, 2020, stand suspended...
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THE “VIRTUAL” VANDALISM: CYBERSQUATTING AS A THREAT TO BRAND SYNERGIES
Introduction“The internet is becoming the Town Square for the global village of tomorrow”, a highly poignant phrase by Bill Gates is capable of encapsulating the significance of virtual ownership in...
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THE CHANGING FACE OF SOCIAL MEDIA: TIKTOK AND THE LURKING IP DISPUTES
“Social media is addictive precisely because it gives us something which the real world lacks; it gives us immediacy, direction, a sense of clarity and value as an individual.”[1]The aforementioned...
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PROTECTING OWNERSHIP IN THE VIRTUAL SPACE: A CLASSIC CASE OF CYBERSQUATTING
The Delhi High Court in the present case [1], granted an ex- parte anti- suit injunction against the Defendants from using the domain name <hindustan.com>. The Plaintiffs, who are the owners of...
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OPPORTUNISTIC INFRINGEMENT IN TIMES OF PANDEMIC: DETTOL VS DEVTOL
In a recent case[1], the Delhi High Court, in a hearing convened via video conferencing, passed a decree of permanent injunction against the Defendant with respect to the infringing mark “Devtol” for...
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Trade Mark Due Diligence: Dot your I's and Cross your T's
Never before has the question of “What’s in a name” been more apt than in the conflict between BMW and Volkswagen regarding Rolls Royce. In 1998, Volkswagen paid approximately $780 million to Vickers...
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AN INSIGHT INTO BLOCKCHAIN AND IP'S CRYPTIC RELATIONSHIP
INTRODUCTIONBlockchain has been one of the most exciting and emerging technologies in recent times garnering a plethora of attention from various market players such as financial institutions,...
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Border Patrolling: An Analysis of Border Control Measures
IntroductionWith the dilution of trade borders worldwide, the problems pertaining to the grey market as well as counterfeit goods have increased exponentially for nations. Grey market goods are genuine...
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Biopiracy in India: Scientific eruption or traditional disruption?
“Charters and patents thus turned Acts of piracy into divine will,” writes Vandana Shiva in her highly acclaimed book Biopiracy: The Plunder of Nature and Knowledge. While researchers and experts have...
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AMENDMENT OF USE CLAIM IN TRADEMARK CASES: EXPANSIVE OR EVASIVE?
The Division Bench of the Delhi High Court recently affirmed the decision of the Single Judge by allowing an application for amendment of plaint before commencement of trial in a trade mark dispute....
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INDIA: PPH BETWEEN INDIA AND JAPAN, NOTIFICATION FOR 9 REQUESTS RELEASED BY...
On July 27, 2020, the Indian Patent Office released a notification inviting Applicants to file PPH requests; the number of requests being limited to 9. The IPO will start accepting the third round of...
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Court refuses interim injunction against Netflix web-series 'BETAAL'
The Bombay High Court refused to grant an interim injunction in a copyright infringement in a case against the Netflix web-series ‘BETAAL’ while deciding upon the interim Applications in the case of...
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How much is too much – A perusal of Jagran Prakashan Ltd. vs. Telegram FZ LLC...
The judgement of the Single Bench of the Delhi High Court deals with the evergreen issue of illegal and rampant distribution of news on social media platforms and the liability of the administrator of...
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THE EXPANDING SCOPE OF PATENTABILITY OF COMPUTER RELATED INVENTIONS: A...
In a highly anticipated decision in the Ferid Allani matter[1], the Intellectual Property Appellate Board (IPAB) has upheld the patentability of Computer Related Inventions (CRI) clarifying that the...
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GE POWER INDIA LTD vs NHPC LIMITED-Jurisdiction of civil courts in Copyright...
In this case, the Plaintiff, through its predecessor in title i.e. Alstom India Ltd. entered into a contract for designing and manufacturing of facilities for a hydro-electric project with Lanco Teesta...
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TO USE OR NOT TO USE: UNDERSTANDING THE CONCEPT OF NOMINATIVE FAIR USE
IntroductionThe core function of a trademark is to act as a source identifier of goods and services, whereas the core benefit of a trademark enjoyed by a Registered Proprietor is the negative right...
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THE ANTI-MONOPOLISTIC ROLLER, INDIA’S PATENT BOLAR
A. INTRODUCTION“A patent is a grant but inventorship is a right”, quotes Kalyan C. Kankanala in his highly revered book “FUN IP: Fundamentals of Intellectual Property”. While for times immemorial,...
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Evolution of SEP litigation in India
The term ‘SEP’ has become widely known owing to the recent wars between smartphone manufacturers around the globe. In India, a patent holder has an exclusive right over a patent protecting its...
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Myanmar’s New Trademark Registration System: Soft Opening Period to commence...
The Ministry of Commerce of Myanmar, vide its notification dated August 28, 2020, has announced that the Soft Opening Period for filing trademark applications under the new trademark registration...
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Decoding AI: the way forward in India
Over the past decade we have seen AI become more entrenched in everyday activities. From the customer care chatbot that tells us to wait while they connect us to a human representative to the...
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The rise of IoT patents in India
The Internet of Things (IoT) has revolutionised both the consumer and the industrial worlds. More and more businesses are realising the potential of the IoT to enhance efficiency and mitigate risks by...
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Pharmaceuticals Trademarks: Indian Perspective
Introduction:The Indian Pharmaceutical industry has been on a steady rise over the previous few years. As per the publication of India Brand Equity Foundation (IBEF) in July 2020[1], the Indian...
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VALUE OF INTANGIBLES: WHY START-UPS SHOULD INVEST IN PATENTS
An entrepreneur’s most valuable asset is the idea he/she possesses and therefore, the first task for any entrepreneur should be to protect and safeguard that idea. Patents are important to start-ups...
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Right to Privacy and Publicity: Two Sides of the Same Coin
INTRODUCTIONIntellectual Property laws are not only confined to traditional subject matters such as trademarks, patents, copyright, and designs etc. but also include within their realm Personality...
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UNDERSTANDING THE CONCEPT OF BAD FAITH IN TRADE MARK LAW
IntroductionBad faith is not a concept uncommon to trademarks. In fact, trademark squatting and crowding of trademark registers has become an international issue now. In cases involving the concept of...
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Suspension of deadlines not applicable to extensions requested prior to March...
The Supreme Court of India, while clarifying the position regarding suspension of deadlines due to COVID 19, vide its order dated September 18, 2020 held that in case the original deadline in any...
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The Impact of Intellectual Property on Virtual Reality
IntroductionWhat do Oculus Rift, Google Cardboard, Sony PlayStation VR, Samsung Gear VR and HTC Vive have in common? They are all virtual reality headsets capable of transporting their users to a new...
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IP FACILITATION PROGRAMMES, SCHEMES, AND POLICIES IN INDIA
INTRODUCTIONIndia has the third largest start-up ecosystem in the world with 2-3 start-ups being born every day. With the Startup India initiative launched in 2016, to build a robust ecosystem for...
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The perplexity surrounding ‘essentially biological processes’ in India
Until 2002 in India, there was a blanket ban on granting patents for inventions related to natural or artificial living entities, biological materials, substances derived from these materials, and any...
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STRENGTHENING INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY COOPERATION: INDIA AND DENMARK JOIN HANDS
In an attempt to further the objectives laid down under the National Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) Policy 2016, India has entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Denmark in the field...
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India steps up efforts to boost tech transfer and innovation
Patents play a seminal role in innovation and tech transfer – a crucial element in a country’s development and success in the global marketplace. A country’s patent regime therefore can be pivotal in...
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IP office takes aim at patentability of computer-related inventions in India
In India, computer-related inventions can be protected under the Copyright Act and the Patent Act. While computer software is protectable as a literary work under the Copyright Act, the scope of...
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TRADE DRESS: WHERE THE VISUAL PERCEPTION TAKES PRECEDENCE
IntroductionVisual perception plays a very important role in enabling the customers to form an association of a product with a particular source and this is where the importance of a trade dress comes...
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