INTELLECTUAL

PROPERTY RIGHTS
 Unit-I

Introduction to Intellectual Property

Rights
Introduction
The intellectual property rights were essentially
recognized and accepted all over the world due to some
very important reasons. Some of the reasons for
accepting these rights are
a. To provide incentive to the individual for new creations.
b. Providing due recognition to the creators and inventors.
c. Ensuring material reward for intellectual property.
d. Ensuring the availability of the genuine and original
products
Def:Intellectual property rights refers to the general term
for the assignment of property rights through patents,
copyrights and trademarks. These property rights allow
the holder to exercise a monopoly on the use of the item
for a specified period.
By restricting imitation and duplication, monopoly
power is conferred, but the social costs of monopoly
power may be offset by the social benefits of higher
Need for IPR
Intellectual property is the area of law that deals with protecting the rights of those who create original
works. It covers everything from original plays and novels to inventions and company identification
marks. The purpose of intellectual property laws are to encourage new technologies, artistic expressions
and inventions while promoting economic growth. When individuals know that their creative work will
be protected and that they can benefit from their labor, they are more likely to continue to produce
things that create jobs, develop new technology, make processes more efficient, and create beauty in the
world around us.
 Types of Intellectual Property
Rights
The term intellectual property is usually thought of
as comprising four separate legal fields:
1. Trade Marks
2. Copyrights
3. Patents
4. Trade secrets
 Trade Marks
Trademarks and Service Marks
A trademark is typically a name, word, phrase, logo,
symbol,
design, image, or a combination of these elements. There is
also a range of non-conventional trademarks comprising
marks which
do not fall into these standard categories, such as those
based on color,
smell, or sound (like jingles). Trademarks which are
considered
offensive are often rejected according to a nation's
trademark law.
Although trademarks used to identify services are usually
called service
marks. The trademark owner can be an individual,
business
organization, or any legal entity. A trademark may be
 Trade Mark symbols
A trademark may be designated by the following symbols:
* ™ (the "trademark symbol",
which is the letters
"TM" in superscript, for an
unregistered trademark,
a mark used to promote or
brand goods)
* SM (which is the letters "SM" in superscript,
for an unregistered service mark, a mark used
to promote or brand services)
® (the letter "R" surrounded by a circle, for a registered trademark)
 Federal Registration and
Duration
Federal Registration of Trademark:
interstate use of trademark is governed by federal
law, namely, The United states Trademark Act
(also called lanham act). Registration is a fairly
lengthy process, generally taking from 12 to 24
months or even longer. The filing fee is $375 per
mark per class of goods or service covered by the
mark.
Duration of Trademark:
A trademark registration is valid for 10 years and
may be renewed for additional 10 year periods
thereafter as long as the mark is in use in
 Copyrights
Copyright is a bundle of rights given by the law to the creators of
literary, dramatic, musical and artistic works and the producers
of cinematograph films and sound recordings. The rights
provided under Copyright law include the rights of
reproduction of the work, communication of the work to the
public, adaptation of the work and translation of the work. The
scope and duration of protection provided under copyright law
varies with the nature of the protected work. Copyright also
protects the works such as books, songs, plays, jeweler, movies,
sculptures, paintings and choreographic works are all protected
by copyright. Computer Software is also protected by copyright.
The copyright symbol, or copyright sign, © (a circled capital letter
C for copyright), is the symbol used in copyright notices.
 Federal Registration and
Duration
Federal Registration:
Federal Registration of copyrights is inexpensive,
requires only a filing fee (for applications filed in
paper form) and the process is expeditious. Works
are protected under federal copyright law from
the time of their creation in a fixed form.
Duration of copy right:
Generally, copyright works are automatically
protected from the moment of their creation for a
term generally enduring for the author's life plus
an additional 70 years after the author's death.
 Patents
A patent is an exclusive right granted for an
invention, which is a product or a process that
provides, in general, a new way of doing
something, or offers a new technical solution to
a problem. To get a patent, technical
information about the invention must be
disclosed to the public in a patent application.
Patent protection is available only for useful,
novel, non-obvious inventions. Generally
patent law prohibits the patenting of an
invention that is merely an insignificant
addition to or minor alteration of something
 Federal Registration and
Duration
Federal Registration of Patents:
To obtain a Patent, an inventor must file an
application with USPTO that fully
describes the invention. Patent protection
is expensive, time-consuming, and
complex. Cost can run into thousands of
dollars, and it generally takes two years
for the USPTO to issue a patent.
Duration of Patent:
Patent protection exists for 20 years from
the date of filing of an applicant.
 Types of Patents
▪ Utility patent
A utility patent may be available for inventions which are
novel,
useful,and nonobvious. Utility patents can be obtained for
the
utilitarian orFunctional aspects of an invention. Utility
patents have a
term of twentyyears from the date of filling the patent
application with
the patent and trademark office, although term extensions
are available
in certain specific situations. During the term of a utility
patent,
Design patent

A design patent can be obtained for the aesthetic

appearance of an
[Link] be eligible design patent, an invention must be
novel, non
obvious and ornamental. In other words, the design must
not serve a
primarily functional purpose. The outward visible feature
of a new light
fixture, for example, might be the subject of a design patent.
Design
patents expire at the conclusion of fourteen from the date
of the grant
of the patent. Design patents are not subject to
maintenance fee
Plant patent
A plant patent may be issued for the
invention or
discovery of a distinct and new variety
of plants,
which may be asexually reproduced. To
qualify
for this type of patent, the discovery or
invention
must be novel, distinct, and non-obvious.
Plant
patents have duration of twenty years
 Trade Secrets
Trade secret is a formula, practice, process, design,
instrument, pattern, commercial method, or
compilation of information not generally known or
reasonably ascertainable by others by which a business
can obtain an economic advantage over competitors or
customers. In some jurisdictions, such secrets are
referred to as "confidential information" but are
generally not referred to as "classified information" in
the United States, since that refers to government
secrets protected by a different set of laws and practices.

A trade secret is information that:

1. Is not generally known to the public.
2. Confers some sort of economic benefit on its holder
(where this benefit must derive specifically from its not
being publicly known, not just from the value of the
information itself).
3. Is the subject of reasonable efforts to maintain its
Protection of Trade Secret
If properly protected, trade secrets may last forever. On
the other hand, if companies fail to take reasonable
measures to maintain the secrecy of information, trade
secret protection may be lost .Thus disclosure of
information should be limited to those with a "need to
know" it so as to perform their duties. Legal protections
include non-disclosure agreements (NDAs),In other
words, in exchange for an opportunity to be employed
by the holder of secrets, an employee may sign
agreements to not reveal their prospective employer's
proprietary information, to surrender or assign to their
employer ownership rights to intellectual work and
work-products produced during the course (or as a
condition) of employment, and to not work for a
competitor for a given period of time (sometimes within
a given geographic region).
Formula of Coca-Cola and has been effective in protecting it for many
more years than the 20 years of protection that a patent would have
provided. In fact, Coca-Cola refused to reveal its trade secret under at
least two judges' orders.
 Agencies Responsible for
Intellectual Property Registration
United States Patent and Trademark
Office(USPTO)
The United States Patent and Trademark Office
is
an agency in the U.S. Department of Commerce
that
issues patents to inventors and businesses for
their
inventions, and trademark registration for
product
and intellectual property identification.
Founded: 2 January 1975, Washington, D.C.,
United
States Headquarters: Alexandria, Virginia,
Seal of the U.S. Patent and
Trademark Office
 United States Patent and
Trademark Office - headquarters
in Alexandria
USPTO
The USPTO is "unique among federal agencies because it
operates solely on fees collected by its users and not on
taxpayer dollars". Its "operating structure is like a business
in
that it receives requests for services—applications for
patents
and trademark registrations—and charges fees projected
to
cover the cost of performing the services it provides.
The USPTO cooperates with the European Patent Office
(EPO) and the Japan Patent Office (JPO) as one of the
Trilateral Patent Offices. The USPTO is also a Receiving
Office, an
International Searching Authority and an International
Preliminary
Examination Authority for international patent
applications filed in
 Library of Congress
The Law Library of Congress is the law library of the United States Congress. The library contains the
complete record of American law as well as materials from over 240 other global legal jurisdictions.
Location: Washington, D.C., U.S.
Founder: John Adams
Founded: 1800, Washington, D.C., United States
Director: Carla Hayden (Librarian of Congress)
Budget: 598.4 million USD
The Library of Congress is the largest library in the world. Its "collections are universal, not
limited by subject, format, or national boundary, and include research materials from all parts of
the world and in more than 450 languages. Two-thirds of the books it acquires each year are in
languages other than English."
The Library's primary mission of researching inquiries made by members of Congress is carried
out through the Congressional Research Service, traces its origin to 1914, and was first
permanently authorized (as the Legislative Reference Service) with the Legislative Reorganization
Act of 1946.
Although the Library is open to the public, only high-ranking government officials may check out books
and materials
(except through Inter-Library Loan, which is available to the public). The Library promotes literacy and
American literature
through projects such as the American Folk life Center, American Memory, Centre for the Book, and Poet
Laureate.
Flag of the Library of Congress
 International Organizations,
Agencies and Treaties
International Trademark Association (INTA)
International Trademark Association (INTA) is a not-for-profit international
association composed chiefly of trademark owners and practitioners It is a
global association Trademark owners and professionals dedicated
insupporting
trademarks and related IP in order to protect consumers and to promote
fair
and effective commerce More than 4000 (Present 6500 member)
companies and law
firms more than 150 (Present 190 countries) countries belong to INTA,
together with
others interested in promoting trademarks INTA offers a wide variety of
educational
seminars and publications, including many worthwhile materials
available at no cost
on the Internet (see INTA’s home page at [Link] INTA
members have
collectively contributes almost US $ 12 trillion to global GDP annually INTA
undertakes advocacy [active support] work throughout the world to
advance
trademarks and offers educational programs and informational and legal
INTA
This association was founded in 1878 by 17 merchants and
manufacturers who
saw a need for an organization The INTA is formed to protect and
promote the
rights of trademark owners, to secure useful legislation (the process of
making
laws), and to give aid and encouragement to all efforts for the
advancement
and observance of trademark rights
INTA, originally known as the United States Trademark Association
(USTA)
Location New York City
Founded: November 1878
The association has headquarters in New York City, offices in Brussels,
Shanghai and Washington, D.C., and a representative in Geneva.
In 2003, INTA opened its China Representative Office in Shanghai: the
first office outside the United States.
In 2006, INTA opened its Europe Representative Office in Brussels,
 World Intellectual Property
Organization (WIPO)
World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) was founded in 1883 and is specialized
agency
of the United Nations whose purposes are to promote intellectual property throughout the
world
and to administer 23 treaties (Present 26 treaties) dealing with intellectual property WIPO is
one
of the 17 specialized agencies of the United Nations It was created in 1967, to encourage
creative
activity, to promote the protection of Intellectual Property throughout the world More than
175
(Present 188) nations are members of WIPO
Its headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland, current Director General of WIPO is Francis Gurry
took
charge on October 1, 2008 The predecessor to WIPO was the BIRPI [Bureaux for the
Protection
of Intellectual Property] it was established in 1893 WIPO was formally created by the
convention
(meeting) establishing the world intellectual Property organization which entered into
force on
April 26 1970 and artistic works It has more than 145 member nations The United States
Madrid Protocol
Madrid Protocol It is a legal basis is the multilateral
treaties Madrid (it is a city situated in Spain) Agreement
concerning the International Registration of Marks of
1891, as
well as the protocol relating to the Madrid Agreement 1989
The Madrid system provides a centrally administered
system
of obtaining a bundle of trademark registration in separate
jurisdiction
The protocol is a filing treaties and not substantive
harmonization treaty It provides a cost-effective and
efficient
way for trademark holder It came into existence in 1996 It
allows trademark protection for more than sixty countries,
including all 25 countries of the European Union
Paris Convention
Paris convention for the protection of Industrial Property, signed
in Paris,
France, on 20th March 1883, was one of the first Intellectual
Property treaties,
after a diplomatic conference in Paris, France, on 20 March 1883
by Eleven
(11) countries According to Articles 2 and 3 of this treaty, juristic
(one who has
through knowledge and experience of law) and natural persons
who are either
national of or domiciled in a state party to the convention The
convention is
currently still force The substantive provisions of the convention
fall into three
main categories: National Treatment, Priority right and Common
Rules
An applicant for a trademark has six months after filing an
application in any
of the more than 160 member nations to file a corresponding
North American Free Trade
Agreement (NAFTA)
(NAFTA) came into effect on January 1, 1994, and is
adhered to by the United States, Canada, and Mexico
The
NAFTA resulted in some changes to US trademark
law,
primarily with regard to marks that include
geographical
terms
The NAFTA was built on the success of the Canada-US
Free Trade Agreement and provided a compliment to
Canada’s efforts through the WTO agreements by
making
deeper commitments in some key areas This
agreement
has brought economic growth and rising standards
General Agreement on Tariffs
and Trade (GATT)
(GATT) was concluded in 1994 and is adhered to
by
most of the major industrialized nations in the
world
The most significant changes to US intellectual
property law from GATT are that nonuse of a
trademark for three years creates a
presumption the
mark has been abandoned and that the
duration of
utility patent is now twenty years from the filing
date of the application (rather than seventeen
years
from the date the patent issued, as was
 Importance of IPR
o Protecting Intellectual Property Rights
o Technology has led to increase awareness about the IP
o Some individuals and companies offer only knowledge Thus,
computer consultant, advertising agencies, Internet companies,
and software implementers sell only brainpower
o Domain names and moving images are also be protected
o More than fifty percent of US exports now depend on some
form of intellectual property protection
o The rapidity with which information can be communicated
through the Internet has led to increasing challenges in the
field of intellectual property
o The most valuable assets a company owns are its Intellectual
property assets
o Companies must act aggressively to protect these valuable
assets from infringement (breaching, violation of law) or
misuse by others
o The field of intellectual property law aims to protect the value
of such investments