Blog, Copyright, Patent, Trademark

INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS AND TYPES OF PATENT APPLICATION

NAME: YADAV PRIYANKA DINESHKUMAR                 Intern at EXCELON IP Trademark & Attorney                 L.M College Of Pharmacy (M-PHARM)  
    • Gujarat is grooving at an unrivaled stride, and Ahmedabad is becoming the proponent of this epic growth. With the introduction of new ideas or businesses, there has been a slog in patent service providers. Hence there is a lack of information in educating people about the patent services, types, and its forms.
    • In simple words property which comes from the human brain and for which government gives protection is called intellectual property. In other words, we can say that IPR is intangible property that protects a work, identifier, or invention. They usually give the creator an exclusive right over the use of his/her creation for a certain period of time.
  • IP can be either registered or unregistered.
  • With registered IP, you will have to apply to an authority, such as the intellectual property office in the UK, to have your rights recognized. If you do not do this, others are free to exploit your creations. Registered forms of IP include patents, registered trademarks, and registered design rights. Copyrights are also registerable.
  • With unregistered IP, you automatically have legal rights over your creation. Under registered forms of IP include copyright, unregistered design rights, common law trademarks and database rights, confidential information, and trade secrets. 
  • Types of intellectual property.                                   
                                                                            
  1. Patent: Save your inventions 
A patent is a legal ideal for a creation conceded for a restriction timeframe to the patentee by the government, whenever a person doing new inventions the chances of stealing of his inventions are more so to protect his/her inventions comes under this rights.
  • It includes just like you have invented a machine or something different or novel in the field of science. India’s Patents Act of 1970, 2003 patent rules, and the 2016 patent amendment rules set out the law concerning patents. As in the UK, there is no provision for utility model patents.
  • The regulatory authority for patents is the registrar under the office of the controller of general of patents, designs, and trademarks, which is part of India’s ministry of commerce and industry. Patents are valid for 20 years from the date of filing an application, subject to an annual renewal fee.
  • India’s patent law operates under the “first to file” principle, if two people apply for a patent on an identical invention, the first one to file the application will be awarded the patent.
  • Trademark: Save your logos 
A company or a business has its own logo which becomes the identity of that company, if it is stolen and used by someone else then the chances of loss in the business increase. To protect this trademark rights are here. India’s trademark law consists of the 1999 Trademark rules of 2002 and 2017.
  • Trade names also constitute a form of the trademark in India with protection, irrespective of existing trade names, for those wishing to trade under their own surname. Because of the widespread practice of “cybersquatting”- the registration in bad faith of marks by third parties registering domain names for certain well-known marks in order to sell them to the original rights owners – it is advisable for rights owners to register their domain names in India as Trademarks as soon as possible.
  • Registration takes up to two years. A Trademark in India is valid for ten years and can be renewed thereafter indefinitely for further ten-year periods.
  • Copyrights: Save your exclusive creations 
Copyrights are the rights that save your creations from being stolen, reused, or reproduced for earning. These rights are for the protection of films, written, music, arts, etc. 
  • India is a signatory to the Berne Convention on copyrights. However, it may be a good idea to register your copyrights as doing so may help to prove ownership if there are criminal proceedings against infringers. 
  • In most cases though, registration is not necessary to maintain a copyright infringement claim in India. Registration is made, in person or via a representative, with the copyright office. Since 2016, copyright policy was moved to India’s Ministry of Commerce and Industry. 
  • All IPRs are now administered by the Department of Industrial Property and Promotion (DIPP).
  • Plant Breeders Rights: Also known as plant variety rights 
These are rights granted to the breeder of a new variety of plant that gives the breeder exclusive control over the propagating material including (seed, cuttings, divisions, tissue culture) and harvested material (cut flowers, fruit, foliage) of a new variety for a number of years. With these rights, the breeders can choose to become the exclusive marketer of the variety or to license the variety to others.  
  1. Geographical indication: 
GI is a sign used on products that have a specific geographical origin and possess qualities or a reputation that are due to that origin. In addition to the qualities, characteristics, or reputation of the product should be essentially due to the place of origin.  
  1. Trade secret: Save your secrecy 
Trade secrets concern secret or proprietary information of commercial value. These are not covered by types of IP are, although there could be aspects of control law or employment law that might be relevant in a particular case. It is confidential proprietary knowledge that is not generally known or reasonably discoverable by others that give you and your business a competitive and economic advantage.   TYPES OF PATENT APPLICATIONS  
  • If you want to protect an invention, you need a patent. Otherwise, someone else can make the same product and sell it. A patent protects intellectual property. It also allows inventors to create unique new products and processes, which can help boost the economy.
  1. Provisional application: 
A non-final, preliminary application is filed before the patent office to claim priority. It is usually filed when an invention requires additional time to improve upon.
  1. Non-provisional application:
An ordinary application clubbed with a complete specification & claims without claiming any priority of application made in a convention country.
  1. Conventional application: 
Claims the priority of another application filed in one or more of the convention countries. An applicant should file the application in the IPO within 12 months from the date of first filing of a similar application in the convention country.
  1. PCT- International application:
Seeking patent protection internationally for inventions. By filing one international patent application under the PCT. Applicants can simultaneously seek protection for an invention in 148 countries throughout the world.
  1. Application for the patent of addition: 
Improvement or modification of the invention described or disclosed in the main application.
  1. Divisional application: 
When claims are more than one invention, the applicant on his own or to meet the official objection may divide the application and file two or more applications. Conclusion
  • Today possession of land, labor, and capital are not enough for a country to succeed. Creativity and innovation are the drivers of the world economy. The policies adopted by a country shall determine the nation’s well being. The development of a country’s intellectual capital is the most important task in these regards. An effective intellectual property rights system lies at the core of the countries development strategies. Within knowledge-based, innovation-driven economies, an intellectual property system is a dynamic tool for wealth creation, providing an incentive for enterprises and individuals to create and innovate a fertile setting for the development of, and trade in, intellectual assets, and a stable environment for domestic and foreign investments. Although India has complied with the obligations of TRIPS by amending the IP laws, certain issues are still needed to be taken care of. And there is a need for constant thinking over the core issue of IP protection, in order to respond to situations arising out of the global competition.