An Overview of Intellectual Property Rights

A Trademark protects a sign which helps distinguish an enterprise of its goods and services from its competitors. A Trademark protects and promotes the branding of an enterprise. Trademark protection is granted to a unique symbol, where once a Trademark is granted, it cannot be illegally replicated. Trademark is governed under the Trade Marks Act, 1999.

Patent protection is an exclusive right which is granted to new and innovative inventions. Once the inventor is granted patent rights for their product, the owner can decide on how or whether others can utilise the invention. After getting their invention patented, the patent owner can make the technical invention of their invention publicly available through a published patent Document. Patent Protection is governed under the Patents Act, 1970 (as amended).

Industrial Designs Protection is granted to the ornamental or aesthetic aspect of an article which secures the potential for commercial applications and is in consonance with the growth of economic advancements and developments. An Industrial Design can constitute three-dimensional features that can be in the form of patterns, lines and colour. Industrial Design Protection is governed under the Designs Act, 2000.

Geographical Indications (GI) is granted to specific goods and service that have the appellations of origin, and the signs utilised are of a specific geographical location which possesses the qualities, characteristics, or reputation essentially attributing to that place of origin. The Rights granted for GI are valuable and are required to be protected against any misuse by fraudulent commercial operators. Geographical Indications is governed under the Geographical Indications of Goods (Registration and Protection) Act, 1999.

Trade Secrets are confidential information which can be sold or licensed and is protected by executing a Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA) that needs to be meticulously vetted by the trade secret owner. The unauthorised acquisition, utilisation or disclosure of Trade Secret information in a manner that is contrary to honest commercial practices is considered as an unfair practice and is a violation of Trade Secret Protection.

After the ratification of the Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS), India enacted the Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers Act, 2001, in accordance with the recommendations received by the International Union for Protection of New Varieties of Plants, Geneva. Plant Variety Protection sustains the progress of the agricultural sector, emphasising the attribution of discovering new breeds and simultaneously seeking the enhancement of the growth of the seed industry.

Layout Designs Integrated Circuits Protection is applicable to provide protection for the layout of transistors and other circuitry elements, which can include connecting lead wires and such elements where it can be expressed in any manner in a semiconductor integrated circuit. Layout Designs of Integrated Circuits Protection is governed under the Semiconductor Integrated Circuits Layout Designs Act, 2000, which in compliance with the TRIPS Agreement, was drafted into the Indian governing system.

Data Protection laws can be referred to as the protection of privacy policies, laws, and procedures that intend to curtail the privacy intrusions caused due to storage, dissemination, and collection of personal data. Personal Data Protection is governed under Information Technology Act, 2000, and the Indian Contract Act, 1872. A codified law in order to specifically provide provisions for Data Protection is likely to be enacted in the forthcoming years.