Introduction

What is Intellectual Property?

Intellectual property (IP) refers to creations of the mind, such as inventions; literary and artistic works; designs; and symbols, names and images used in commerce.

IP is protected in law by, for example, patents, copyright and trademarks, which enable people to earn recognition or financial benefit from what they invent or create. By striking the right balance between the interests of innovators and the wider public interest, the IP system aims to foster an environment in which creativity and innovation can flourish.

Copyright & Related Rights:

The subject-matter of copyright is the literary, dramatic and musical or artistic work, a cinematograph film and a sound recording. Literary work includes computer programmes, tables and compilations including computer databases.
The object of this right is not the material thing produced, but the form impressed upon it by the maker. The picture, in the abstract sense of the artistic form made by visible by that paint and canvas, belongs to him who made it.

Trade Mark:

Trademark is anything which identifies the origin of the goods or services. It can be a name, symbol, logo, colour, sound etc. Trademark symbolizes the value or goodwill associated with the goods and its specific source. It distinguishes one firm from others. Benefits of trademarks are several-fold

It helps consumers to identify products with desirable attributes quickly. It encourages firms to improve quality of their product. In absence of any identification mark, it would be difficult to distinguish the duplicates from high quality products. This will lower the incentive of the firm to make high quality products as the returns would be same as that of inferior products. Trademark protection gives a “monopoly power” over the distinctive trademark in the sense that others are debarred from using the same or a confusingly similar trademark. However this kind of monopoly power does not involve any welfare loss as its aim is not to prevent similar products but only to prevent use of similar or deceptive marks with the aim of confusing the consumer. As a result, trademarks have mostly a positive incentive effect. It may seem that overall the economics of trademark protection and the intellectual property law of those marks is non-conflicting. 

Patents:

The subject-matter of a patent-right is an invention. He whose skill or labour produces the idea of a new process, instrument or manufacture has that idea as his own in law. He alone is entitled to use it and to draw from it the profit inherent in it.

Geographical Indications:

A geographical indication is a name or sign used on certain products which corresponds to a specific geographical location or origin (e.g. a town, region, or country). India, as a member of the World Trade Organization (WTO), enacted the Geographical Indications of Goods (Registration and Protection) Act, 1999 has come into force with effect from 15 September 2003. GIs have been defined under Article 22(1) of the WTO Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) Agreement as: “Indications which identify a good as originating in the territory of a member, or a region or a locality in that territory, where a given quality, reputation or characteristic of the good is essentially attributable to its geographic origin.”

Industrial Designs:

Industrial design means only the features of shape, configuration, pattern, ornament or composition of lines or colours applied to any article whether in two dimensional or three dimensional or both forms, by any industrial process or means whether manual, mechanical or chemical, separate or combined, which in the finished article appeal to and are judged solely by the eye; but does not include any mode or principle of construction and does not include any trademark.

Conclusion

Intellectual property rights are monopoly rights that grant temporary privileges to their holders for the exclusive exploitation of income rights from cultural expressions and inventions. There must be good reasons for a society to grant such privileges to some of its individuals, and so proponents of these rights provide us with three widely accepted justifications to protect today’s inter-global intellectual property rights. It is clear that the management of IP and IPR is a multi-disciplinary task and calls for many different functions and strategies that need to be aligned with national laws and international treaties and practices. It is no longer fully driven from the national point of view.

Different forms of IPR demand different treatment, handling, planning and strategies, and individuals’ engagement with different domain knowledge such as science, engineering, medicine, law, finance, marketing, and economics. Intellectual property rights (IPR) have social, economic, technical and political implications. Leading rapid technology, globalization and fierce competition to protect against infringement of innovations with the help of IPRs such as patents, trademarks, service marks, industrial design registrations, copyrights and trade secrets. But there is still a violation of intellectual property rights. The government is also taking measures to stop them. There are laws regarding the prevention of infringement of intellectual property rights.

Aishwarya Says:

I have always been against Glorifying Over Work and therefore, in the year 2021, I have decided to launch this campaign “Balancing Life”and talk about this wrong practice, that we have been following since last few years. I will be talking to and interviewing around 1 lakh people in the coming 2021 and publish their interview regarding their opinion on glamourising Over Work.

If you are interested in participating in the same, do let me know.

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We also have a Facebook Group Restarter Moms for Mothers or Women who would like to rejoin their careers post a career break or women who are enterpreneurs.

We are also running a series Inspirational Women from January 2021 to March 31,2021, featuring around 1000 stories about Indian Women, who changed the world. #choosetochallenge