Intellectual Property Laws of India
Intellectual Property Laws of India
James Thanickan
When India became a Republic in 1950, India had Intellectual Property legislations on copyrights, patents, designs and trade marks. These were mostly adaptations of the laws of Great Britain in each area and were of general international norms. Subsequently, India modified the Intellectual Property legislations to make them meet national needs and requirements. Pursuant to the country’s joining the World Trade Organisation, India either modified the existing legislations or enacted new legislations in all the intellectual properties identified in the Agreement on Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS Agreement), as per the obligations it committed. There are now specific legislations on Copyrights and Related Rights, Patents, Trade Marks, Designs, Geographical Indications of Goods, Plant Varieties and Farmers’ Rights, and Semiconductor Integrated Circuits Layout-Designs. In addition, India also has legislations on protection of biological diversity and competition. The Indian Intellectual Property legislations are now fully TRIPS compatible. A brief overview of these legislations is presented in the following paragraphs.
Copyrights
India has a long history of copyright law enactment. As early as 1857, India passed a law to protect copyrights. Later, another Act was passed in 1862. But the Act which became a milestone was the Copyright Act, 1914. This was based on the Copyright Act, 1911 of the United Kingdom with suitable modifications for India. This Act remained in force until replaced by the present Copyright of 1957 on 21 January 1958. The present legislation was amended periodically in 1983, 1984, 1992, 1994 and 1999 to meet requirements of the times. Presently, a set of amendments is under consideration of the Parliament. Regulations regarding procedures and other matters are prescribed in the Copyright Rules, 1958 as amended from time to time.
The Copyright Act extends
James Thanickan
When India became a Republic in 1950, India had Intellectual Property legislations on copyrights, patents, designs and trade marks. These were mostly adaptations of the laws of Great Britain in each area and were of general international norms. Subsequently, India modified the Intellectual Property legislations to make them meet national needs and requirements. Pursuant to the country’s joining the World Trade Organisation, India either modified the existing legislations or enacted new legislations in all the intellectual properties identified in the Agreement on Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS Agreement), as per the obligations it committed. There are now specific legislations on Copyrights and Related Rights, Patents, Trade Marks, Designs, Geographical Indications of Goods, Plant Varieties and Farmers’ Rights, and Semiconductor Integrated Circuits Layout-Designs. In addition, India also has legislations on protection of biological diversity and competition. The Indian Intellectual Property legislations are now fully TRIPS compatible. A brief overview of these legislations is presented in the following paragraphs.
Copyrights
India has a long history of copyright law enactment. As early as 1857, India passed a law to protect copyrights. Later, another Act was passed in 1862. But the Act which became a milestone was the Copyright Act, 1914. This was based on the Copyright Act, 1911 of the United Kingdom with suitable modifications for India. This Act remained in force until replaced by the present Copyright of 1957 on 21 January 1958. The present legislation was amended periodically in 1983, 1984, 1992, 1994 and 1999 to meet requirements of the times. Presently, a set of amendments is under consideration of the Parliament. Regulations regarding procedures and other matters are prescribed in the Copyright Rules, 1958 as amended from time to time.
The Copyright Act extends