Author name: Prashant Reddy

T. Prashant Reddy graduated from the National Law School of India University, Bangalore, with a B.A.LLB (Hons.) degree in 2008. He later graduated with a LLM degree (Law, Science & Technology) from the Stanford Law School in 2013. Prashant has worked with law firms in Delhi and in academia in India and Singapore. He is also co-author of the book Create, Copy, Disrupt: India's Intellectual Property Dilemmas (OUP).

TPM Jurisprudence Going Awry – Reviewing the Delhi High Court’s Judgment in Tata Sky v. YouTube

/ By / Copyright

A couple of weeks ago, Kartik had written a detailed post on a judgment by the Delhi High Court in the case of Tata Sky v. YouTube. The facts of the case are quite simple. Tata Sky sued You Tube on the grounds that the latter had failed to take down videos which taught viewers to circumvent certain technological protection measures (TPM) to view HD channels broadcast by Tata Sky, without paying for access. The main cause of action in […]

TPM Jurisprudence Going Awry – Reviewing the Delhi High Court’s Judgment in Tata Sky v. YouTube Read More »

The Sub-Standard Drug Problem: A Report Explaining the Failures of India’s Drug Regulatory System

/ By / Drug Regulation

Although this blog concentrates mainly on IP issues, we occasionally do cover drug regulatory issues. The state of drug regulation in India, as most of you will know, is quite alarming. Plant after plant is being banned by foreign regulators, while CRO outfits like the GVK Bio stand accused of serious fraud. Clearly, the present Drug Controller General of India (DCGI) G. N. Singh is presiding over a system which is failing at every level. He admitted as much when

The Sub-Standard Drug Problem: A Report Explaining the Failures of India’s Drug Regulatory System Read More »

Gene Patents and Plant Varieties: NSAI v. Monsanto

/ By / Patent, Plant Variety Protection

In an earlier post, accessible here, I had explained the NSAI’s new IP strategy in the ongoing dispute with Monsanto. To briefly recap, the technology involved is Monsanto’s patent over a certain gene sequence of the Bt. bacteria as inserted into a cotton genome. The NSAI is arguing that while gene patents are recognised under the law, the same cannot be enforced under Indian patent law and that once the Bt. Trait is introduced into cotton genome, it will be

Gene Patents and Plant Varieties: NSAI v. Monsanto Read More »

The NSAI’s new IP strategy in its dispute with Monsanto

/ By / Overlaps in IP, Patent, Plant Variety Protection

The National Seed Association of India (NSAI), comprising mostly of Indian seed companies, has published on its website a series of documents outlining its IP strategy in its dispute with Monsanto. As explained in our earlier posts available over here, here and here, some of the biggest Indian seed companies like Nuziveedu (whose chairman heads NSAI) are engaged in a high stakes battle with Monsanto over the technology licensing agreements between both parties. The history of this dispute can be

The NSAI’s new IP strategy in its dispute with Monsanto Read More »

ISRA’s Dubious Victory before the Delhi High Court

/ By / Copyright

On August 12, 2016 Justice S. Murlidhar of the Delhi High Court passed a short 8 page final judgment restraining a Delhi food establishment from infringing the performing rights being administered by the Indian Singers’ Right Association (ISRA). This judgment is the first judicial victory for the performer’s society since it was was registered by the Registrar of Copyrights under the Copyright Act, 1957. The first lawsuit is always the most crucial lawsuit for new performing societies like ISRA because

ISRA’s Dubious Victory before the Delhi High Court Read More »

Do online advertising platforms qualify for ‘intermediary liability’ protection?

/ By / Others

A couple of weeks ago, The Wire, published an article by Apar Gupta titled ‘The Supreme Court’s Slow March Towards Eroding Online Intermediary Liability’. In his very well-written piece Apar, a well-known lawyer in the media-IT space, laments the approach adopted by the Supreme Court in an ongoing case regarding the display of advertisements related to ‘sex determination’ kits on the internet. The Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques Act, 1994 prohibits the advertising of any diagnostics which enable a person to determine

Do online advertising platforms qualify for ‘intermediary liability’ protection? Read More »

Innovation and Regulation of Ayurvedic medicine: CSIR’s BGR-34, nimensulide in Ayurvedic medicine and other such stories

/ By / Drug Regulation, Traditional Knowledge

A few years ago, Open magazine published an excellent cover story “Ayurveda: Hoax or Science?” by Priyanka Pulla, one of India’s best science journalists. (She’s written for us on a couple of occasions over here and here). That cover story discussed several issues surrounding Ayurvedic drugs and how despite having a Rs. 8,000 crore market in India there is still not enough evidence for modern medicine to prescribe any Ayurvedic medication. In her story Priyanka asks “Why hasn’t the dazzling

Innovation and Regulation of Ayurvedic medicine: CSIR’s BGR-34, nimensulide in Ayurvedic medicine and other such stories Read More »

Financial Technologies (India) Ltd. gets sued for copyright infringement by American company

/ By / Copyright

The Mint’s Jayshree P. Upadhyay, recently published a detailed report on how an American company, Modulus Financial Engineering Inc. has sued Financial Technologies (India) Ltd. before the Bombay High Court for infringing the company’s copyright in its trading software and has claimed $480 million dollars or Rs. 3,190 crores, in damages. FTIL is a company which has developed a reputation for being the rare Indian company to successfully develop software products for the financial markets. Its main clients are brokers

Financial Technologies (India) Ltd. gets sued for copyright infringement by American company Read More »

Delhi High Court takes ‘internet blocking’ jurisprudence back to the stone ages

/ By / Copyright

Just as the Bombay High Court was restoring some sense of sanity by streamlining ‘blocking’ orders demanded by copyright owners against online pirates, a Division Bench of the Delhi High Court has passed orders allowing for the blocking of entire websites rather than specific URLs. This order passed by the Division Bench of the Delhi High Court on July 29, 2016 is weak on law and appears to be grossly erroneous given the specific facts of this case. Let’s start

Delhi High Court takes ‘internet blocking’ jurisprudence back to the stone ages Read More »

Roche & Biocon sue each other for contempt in Herceptin biosimilar case while Roche and Hetero squabble over judge in Avastin biosimilar case

/ By / Drug Regulation

The ongoing biosimilar litigation between Roche and Indian generic companies is becoming more contentious with every passing day. ET’s Prabha Raghavan reported on July 15 that both Roche and Biocon are now suing each other for contempt before the Delhi High Court. As Rahul had reported earlier over here, Justice Manmohan Singh had passed orders in an earlier litigation restraining Biocon and its partner Mylan from using the name Herceptin (or associated Indian trademarks) while marketing its drug although he

Roche & Biocon sue each other for contempt in Herceptin biosimilar case while Roche and Hetero squabble over judge in Avastin biosimilar case Read More »

Scroll to Top