SpicyIP Tidbits

1.The International Music Score Library Project faces closure.

In what could be termed as black letter for music aficionados around the world, the IMSL has been shut down after threats from music publishers.

Started by a student in Canada, IMSLP was a major resource of music scores of western classical music uploaded by a global community in PDF form. Further IMSLP only collected only scores whose copyright had expired.

A befitting tribute and obituary to the Project: IMSLP was a perfect “commons” project: it allowed a well-defined community to jointly build a scarce and expensive resource whose
cultural value had been validated by the centuries and was largely free of copyright constraint.

2. FICCI recommends punitive damages for piracy

Industry body FICCI today said the government should impose “exemplary punitive damages” on violators of intellectual property rights to arrest the rising incidence of piracy and counterfeiting
In a communication to the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP), FICCI has called upon the government to ensure that enforcement authorities impose punitive damages on the offender
These measures would act as a strong deterrent to those who indulge in selling, distributing, storing and trading counterfeit, spurious and pirated products.(Economic Times)

3. Mashelkar recommends Social Innovation and affordable technology to empower people

Affordable technology that empowers people at the grassroots is the kind of innovation required to become a moral and ethical superpower, which is also the rationale behind Tata’s one-lakh car, said Dr R A Mashelkar president of the Indian National Science Academy (INSA) and former director General of the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Mumbai’s alumni association inaugural function Innovations ‘08.

Technology innovation can make a difference to social innovation,” Mashelkar said, adding that such an innovation would happen by keeping in mind “the price performance envelope, worrying about the bottom of the pyramid and experimentation.”

4.Prime Minister Adresses 95^th Indian Science Congress at Vishakaptnam-

Kapil Sibal announces FICCI to draft Innovation Act within the year.

The Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh inaugurated the 95th Indian Science Congress at Visakhapatnam early this week on buoyant New Year note

“I am also very happy that this year the theme for the 95th Indian Science Congress is “Knowledge Based Society Using Environmentally Sustainable Science And Technology.”said Dr. Singh

Dr. Singh also urged the scientific community to tap into our traditional knowledge base, to develop environment-friendly and efficient technologies.”

Shri Kapil Sibal, Union Minister for Science and Technology in his keynote address at the Congress further announced that the government has requested FICCI to prepare a draft of the new Innovation Act within the course of the year. The India Innovation Act is likely to be modeled on the lines of the ‘America Competes Act’, which focuses on three primary areas of importance to maintain and improve innovation in the US in the 21st century. These are: increasing research investment; strengthening education opportunities in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics from elementary through graduate school; and developing an innovation infrastructure.

We would like to draw the attention of our readers to Shamnads’ post recommending an India Innovation Act.

5. Patent Applications on the rise-Chemicals &Pharma, Electronics, Telecom, Mechanical Engg , Biotch contribute most

With the Centres’ bid to strengthen the country’s patent system, the number of patent applications in India is on the rise. In the first eight months of this fiscal year , the country has received 22,805 applications –both from Indian and overseas firms.(Economic Times)

6. Cambridge varsity sets up Nehru Chair

University of Cambridge has launched a chair on Indian business and enterprise. The Jawaharlal Nehru Professorship of Indian Business and Enterprise has been fully funded by the Indian Government with a contribution of £3.2 million (approx Rs 25 crore) for it.

The Cambridge Centre for Indian Business will support the work of the Jawaharlal Nehru Professorship of Indian Business and Enterprises.

It will initially focus on contemporary research themes relating to today’s business environment.

Themes to be covered in the first three years include technology innovation, emerging global economies, the relationship between economic development and knowledge economy, and entrepreneurship.(The Hindu Business Line)

7. Companies to get back Patent fees.

In an move to promote innovation among emerging companies, the Department of Information Technology has launched its programme entitled, “Support International Patent Protection in Electronics & IT (SIP-EIT)”. Under the scheme, small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and technology start-ups can apply for reimbursement, up to a limit of Rs 15 lakh, for the costs incurred in filing international patent applications. This scheme applies for their indigenous inventions in the electronics and information, communication and technology (ICT) domain. The grant will disbursed to applicants on a reimbursement basis and will be limited to 50 percent of the total expenses in actual cost incurred by the applicant on filing international patent.(Business Standard)