If there was a mention of ‘properties’, everyone would first assume that it’s about a piece of land, a building, and even if someone went away from real estate, they would not go too far from gold and diamonds. Intellectual property is the last thing to strike someone at such times. To illuminate and get the basics clear, Lawgical Shots is all set. The blog here names and explains the basics of types of Intellectual Property Rights in India. But first, we will explain about the concept of Intellectual Property Rights, or IPR.
What is Intellectual Property?
There are two words here – Intellect and Property. In simple words, intellectual property can be understood as anything that is a product of someone’s intellect. Since the human brain is so advanced, creative and skilled, it imagines things, and has the potential to bring them into a reality. Paintings, stories, designs, hybrid fruits and vegetables, all of it is an idea brought into reality. It may be noted that unless the imagination is brought into reality, the idea is not a property, and thus, not an intellectual property. So if someone has a story in his/her mind, it is still an idea and not an intellectual property. When the same story is published in the form of a blog, novel, newspaper column, it becomes a property – intellectual property.
What are Intellectual Property Rights?
Where there is a property, there are one or more owners of the same. So, if someone owns something, there has to be some right to own that thing. Therefore, intellectual property rights can be understood as the rights which a person has over the property brought in through his/her intellect. Such a right pertains to exclusivity, profits, name, fame, and every aspect associated with that intellectual property.
Types of Intellectual Property Rights in India
- Copyright
Imagine you put in 3-4 hours writing a blog, and someone copies the same to get published. Regardless of whether they make money out of the same, you will never feel good about it. That’s because it was your work, a product of your own intellect. Here, the Copyright laws come to legal backing.
The Copyright Act, 1957 governs the procedure and lays the rights pertaining to copyright in India. It covers literary, dramatic, musical or artistic work, cinematograph film, sound recordings. It may be noted that not only the original works but their reproduction in another form is also subject to copyright. For example, if someone writes a story and a film is picturised on the same, the author of the story had its copyright and can sue the film makers for infringing his/her copyright.
- Patent
They say necessity is the mother of invention. Patents can be regarded as the security personnels of invention. When an invention comes into reality, it serves a purpose, probably doing something that has never been done, or simplifying tasks which relieves human labour, or just beautifies some existing norms. While its purpose could be anything, you as an inventor would never want to give away your years of research and innovative work for someone else to enjoy without having any credits. That’s where patents come into play.
The Patents Act, 1970 lays what can and cannot be patented, and the procedure to be followed for registration of patents in India. The procedure here requires the person or organization to prove certain pointers regarding the innovation, which is accordingly assessed before allowing protection under the laws. While other types of intellectual property rights in India are countless every year, patents face a lower number, but the good part is that the numbers are going green in the graph in recent years.
- Trade Mark
Here, I would like the readers to activate their memory and remember the number of times when you ordered a Bisleri water bottle, and what did you get? I bet it was not always a BISLERI but – Bilseri, Brisleri, Bilseri, Biseri, etc. The point here is while you ordered a brand, you got its infringements in return. Now how does that matter? That’s because Bisleri has a brand value in packaged water bottles, and anyone playing with the brand spelling and using the same coloured packaging has the potential to mislead the buyers. That’s what happened to you. Now, Bisleri can sue all those Bilseri, Brisleri, Bilseri, Biseri (s) for infringement under the Trade Marks Act, 1999 which specifies what all is subject to trade marks. Trade mark registration is a bliss for business owners to stay exclusive in the eyes of their customers.
- Geographical Indication
Have you seen one of those Banarasi Sarees, tasted Darjeeling tea, Nagpur oranges, Kashmiri apples, Bikaneri Bhujia, Agra Petha, Mysore silk, Pashmina, and the list goes on and on. All these specialities, whether clothing or eatables, have a location connection, either express or implied. All the examples used here have a geographical indication tag. Location has a significant role to play in some goods. To safeguard that local essence, GI tags are given.
The Geographical Indications of Goods (Registration and Protection) Act, 1999 lays what qualifies as geographical indication and the procedure as well. Being among the types of intellectual property rights in India, GI tags can be regarded as the combination of intellect and geography.
- Design
The Designs Act, 2000 governs procedure pertaining to designs in India. It usually covers the shape, pattern, configuration, composition or ornament of lines or colours used in the aesthetics of an article or product of manufacture. Electronics, vehicles, furniture, tools, building materials are some of the examples of what can be protected under the Designs Act.
- Trade Secrets
As a kid, I loved Maggi, so much that I could smell it if it was being cooked in the neighbourhood. The taste and aroma of Maggi Masala still fill my nostrils and ignite that childhood advertisement song – Maggi Maggi Maggi. The taste of Coca Cola…..Uff. Can I make that at home…… Someone please share the recipe book. Oh wait……that’s a trade secret that nobody knows and the employees are not supposed to share, or they will have to face legal consequences. There is no separate legislation which governs trade secrets as a type of intellectual property right in India. However, the same is enforced through the Indian Contract Act through provisions pertaining to non-disclosure. Among the types of intellectual property rights in India, Trade secrets hold a significant pedestal for businesses and industry.
- Plant Breeding
Farmers and Plant Breeders are not only responsible for the stocks of staples, fruits, vegetables, etc. When we say that a new variety of some particular fruit hit the markets, there is someone who spent days and months and years experimenting on growing that plant variety. The purpose could be to enhance the taste, to protect against pests, to multiply the commercial value, literally anything. The Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmer’s Rights Act, 2001 protects such experiments and the breeders.
- Integrated Circuits
Have you seen those green plates with some black tiny boxes pasted and a few lines running parallely – in the Televisions, CPU of the Computer, or any other electronic gadget? Those are technically termed as integrated circuits. They are technically the ‘fundamental building blocks’ of electronics these days. A single chip of integrated circuits has several functions, and thus, its design and making matters. The Semiconductor Integrated Circuits Layout-Design Act, 2000 provides for protection of integrated circuits as one of the types of intellectual property rights in India.
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