NAME : JAIN JINAL MAHENDRA
STREAM : SCIENCE
CLASS : SYBSC/PM
DIV : I
ROLL NO : SS08
SUBJECT : FOUNDATION COURSE
TITLE : INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY
RIGHTS: NEED OF THE HOUR. GIVE
ONE CASE STUDY
CONTENTS
1. Introduction
2. Importance
3. History
4. Objectives
5. Types Of Intellectual Property
6. Case Study
7. Conclusion
8. Biblography
Introduction:-
Intellectual property rights are legal rights that provide creators protection for original works,
inventions, or the appearance of products, artistic works, scientific developments, and so on.
Basically speaking, intellectual property rights are a common type of legal IP protection
for those who invent.
These rights have contributed enormously to the world, in particular economically.
Many companies in various industries rely on the enforcement of their patents, trademarks,
and copyrights, while consumers can also be assured of quality when purchasing IP-backed
products.
Examples of intellectual property rights include:
• Patents
• Domain names
• Industrial design
• Confidential information
• Inventions
• Moral rights
• Database rights
• Works of authorship
• Service marks
• Logos
• Trademarks
• Design rights
• Business or trade names
• Commercial secrets
• Computer software
The Importance of Intellectual Property Rights
The purpose of intellectual property rights is to encourage new creations, including technology,
artwork, and inventions, that might increase economic growth. Intellectual property rights increase
the incentives for individuals to continue to produce things that further create job opportunities and
new technologies while enabling our world to improve and evolve even faster.
According to The U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s Global Innovation Policy Center:
Intellectual Property Creates and Supports High-Paying Jobs
IP-intensive industries employ over 45 million Americans and hundreds of millions of other people
worldwide. The average worker in an IP industry earns about 46% more than their counterpart in a
non-IP industry.
Intellectual Property Drives Economic Growth and Competitiveness
America’s IP industry is worth approximately US$ 6.6 trillion, which is more than the nominal GDP of
any other country in the world. IP-intensive industries account for over 1/3 (or 38.2%) of total U.S.
GDP. 52% of all U.S. merchandise exports are related to IP, amounting to nearly US$ 842 billion.
BRIEF HISTORY
The laws and administrative procedures relating to IPR have their roots in Europe. The trend of
granting patents started in the fourteenth century. In comparison to other European countries, in
some matters England was technologically advanced and used to attract artisans from elsewhere, on
special terms. The first known copyrights appeared in Italy. Venice can be considered the cradle of IP
system as most legal thinking in this area was done here; laws and systems were made here for the
first time in the world, and other countries followed in due course.[4] Patent act in India is more
than 150 years old. The inaugural one is the 1856 Act, which is based on the British patent system
and it has provided the patent term of 14 years followed by numerous acts and amendments.[1]
Objectives:-
The New IPR Policy 2016 is rather well thought and lays down following objectives of IPR-
1. The main objective of IPR is to create public awareness about the benefits of Intellectual property
among all sections of society.
2. To stimulate the creation and growth of intellectual property by undertaking relevant measures.
3. To have strong and effective laws with regard to IP rights, consistent with international
obligations.
4. To modernise and strengthen IP administration.
5. To catalyse commercialization of IP rights.
6. To strengthen the enforcement and adjudicatory mechanisms for combating IP violations and to
promote awareness and respect for IP rights.
7. Capacity development by strengthening and expanding human resources, institutions for training,
research and skill building in IP.
Types of Intellectual Property:-
There are four main types of intellectual property rights, including patents, trademarks, copyrights,
and trade secrets. Owners of intellectual property frequently use more than one of these types of
intellectual property law to protect the same intangible assets. For instance, trademark law protects
a product’s name, whereas copyright law covers its tagline.
1. Patents
The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office grants property rights to original inventions, from processes to
machines. Patent law protects inventions from use by others and gives exclusive rights to one or
more inventors. Technology companies commonly use patents, as seen in the patent for the first
computer to protect their investment in creating new and innovative products. The three types of
patents consist of:
Design patents: Protection for the aesthetics of a device or invention. Ornamental design patents
include a product’s shape (Coca-Cola bottle), emojis, fonts, or any other distinct visual traits.
Plant patents: Safeguards for new varieties of plants. An example of a plant patent is pest-free
versions of fruit trees. But inventors may also want a design patient if the tree has unique visual
properties.
Utility patents: Protection for a product that serves a practical purpose and is useful. IP examples
include vehicle safety systems, software, and pharmaceuticals. This was the first, and is still the
largest, area of patent law.
2. Trademarks
Trademarks protect logos, sounds, words, colors, or symbols used by a company to distinguish its
service or product. Trademark examples include the Twitter logo, McDonald’s golden arches, and
the font used by Dunkin.
Although patents protect one product, trademarks may cover a group of products. The Lanham Act,
also called the Trademark Act of 1946, governs trademarks, infringement, and service marks.
3. Copyrights
Copyright law protects the rights of the original creator of original works of intellectual property.
Unlike patents, copyrights must be tangible. For instance, you can’t copyright an idea. But you can
write down an original speech, poem, or song and get a copyright.
Once someone creates an original work of authorship (OWA), the author automatically owns the
copyright. But, registering with the U.S. Copyright Office gives owners a head-start in the legal
system.
4. Trade Secrets
Trade secrets are a company’s intellectual property that isn’t public, has economic value, and carries
information. They may be a formula, recipe, or process used to gain a competitive advantage.
To qualify as a trade secret, companies must work to protect proprietary information actively. Once
the information is public knowledge, then it’s no longer protected under trade secrets laws.
According to 18 USC § 1839(3), assets may be tangible or intangible, and a trade secret can involve
information that’s:
Business
Financial
Technical
Economic
Scientific
Engineering
Two well-known examples include the recipe for Coca-Cola and Google’s search algorithm. Although
a patent is public, trade secrets remain unavailable to anyone but the owner
A number of common IPRs are outlined in the table below
A patent protects an invention. It gives the holder an exclusive right to prevent
Patents others from selling, making and using the patented invention for a certain period
(typically 20 years from filing date)
Copyright protects the expression of literary or artistic work. Protection arises
Copyright automatically giving the holder the exclusive right to control reproduction or
adaptation.
A trademark is a distinctive sign which is used to distinguish the products or
Trademarks services of one business from others. Trademarks are often closely linked to
brands.
Protects the form of outward appearance or aesthetic style of an object. Does not
Design
protect functionality or unseen (internal) design elements.
Database right prevents copying of substantial parts of a database. The protection
Database is not over the form of expression of information but of the information itself, but
in many other aspects database right is similar to copyright.
A trade secret is a formula, practice, process, design or compilation of information
Trade
used by a business to obtain an advantage over competitors. Trade secrets are by
secrets
definition not disclosed to the world at large.
CASE STUDY
Star India Pvt. Ltd. v. [Link]
&Ors. (2020) Delhi HC
In this case, Plaintiff Star India was a film production and distribution company while the
defendant owned online streaming websites. The case relates to unauthorized streaming of
the plaintiff’s film on the defendant’s streaming website. The plaintiff filed a suit for
infringement of copyright.
The Delhi High Court held the defendant liable for infringement of copyright of plaintiff
work for streaming its copyrighted content without the knowledge and consent of the
plaintiff. The Court granted injunction and damages and thus Plaintiff’s exclusive right to
exploitation was re-ensured.
ISKON v. Iskon Apparel Pvt. Ltd. (2020)
Bombay HC
The plaintiff ISKON has filed the case on infringement of its trademark by the defendant,
where the defendant has used the word ‘ISKON’ on its products and has also passed off his
brand. The plaintiff has also sought to get their trademark declared as a well-known mark.
It was held that the defendant has clearly infringed the trademark of the plaintiff and has also
passed off his brand by deceiving people and giving them a false belief that its products are
associated with the plaintiff. The court also held that plaintiff’s trademark has satisfied all the
criteria to become a well-known mark.
Conclusion
It is obvious that management of IP and IPR is a multidimensional task and calls for many
different actions and strategies which need to be aligned with national laws and international
treaties and practices. It is no longer driven purely by a national perspective. IP and its
associated rights are seriously influenced by the market needs, market response, cost involved
in translating IP into commercial venture and so on. In other words, trade and commerce
considerations are important in the management of IPR. Different forms of IPR demand
different treatment, handling, planning, and strategies and engagement of persons with
different domain knowledge such as science, engineering, medicines, law, finance,
marketing, and economics. Each industry should evolve its own IP policies, management
style, strategies, etc. depending on its area of specialty. Pharmaceutical industry currently has
an evolving IP strategy. Since there exists the increased possibility that some IPR are invalid,
antitrust law, therefore, needs to step in to ensure that invalid rights are not being unlawfully
asserted to establish and maintain illegitimate, albeit limited, monopolies within the
pharmaceutical industry. Still many things remain to be resolved in this context.
Biblography:-
1. Intellectual Property Rights Meanings and Objectives
2. 10 Landmark Cases on Intellectual Property Rights
3. Different Types of Intellectual Property Rights and Why They Are Important
4. Intellectual Property Rights: Definition and Examples