This move on FICCI’s part once again emphasizes its commitment to empower Indian businesses by establishing a much desired IP Facilitation Centre for MSMEs. MSMEs contribute a huge amount to India’s economic growth and development –in terms of value, the MSME sector contributes about 39% of the manufacturing output and about 33% of the total export of the country and also has the potential to pave new ways and concepts for successful innovation in the 21st century. The contribution of this sector to the country’s GDP is 9%. Furthermore, throughout the years, the sector has exhibited consistent growth and is a major provider of employment, employing around 31 million people, which is four times higher than the larger enterprises.
In a knowledge driven economy, it is of the utmost importance to protect one’s intellectual assets, chiefly owing to the competitive advantage provided by the same. Properly protected intellectual assets can increase the market value of a business and can improve the future profitability. This facilitation will provide various IP related services at cost basis and is thus a significant move on FICCI’s part.
For more information regarding the Facilitation Centre, kindly contact Ms. Sheetal Chopra, Deputy Director, FICCI IPR Division at [email protected]; [email protected]
“In a knowledge driven economy, it is of the utmost importance to protect one’s intellectual assets.” I could not agree with you more. I’m also quite heartened by the news of this facilitation center. It’s increasingly important for SMEs to understand the value of their intellectual property and to learn how to protect these assets — preferably sooner rather than later. Otherwise, the chances are quite high that they will eventually fall victim to IP theft or exploitation, and will wind up embroiled in sometimes-crushing (and always costly) patent enforcement litigation.