SpicyIP Tidbit: Expansion of Investigation by DG in the Auto Spare Parts Case Valid – Madras HC

/ By / Competition Law

Read the decision here. In a decision that we had reported on a while ago, the Competition Commission of India, had fined a number of automobile manufacturers for anti-competitive practices in the sale of their spare parts. After the order of the Commission, various auto manufacturers have filed writs in High Courts challenging the order and even the functioning and vires of the Commission itself. The present writ petition however was filed a while ago in 2012 as a challenge […]

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MHRD IPR Chairs- The Anarchy and Hollow Attempt at Development of IPR in India

/ By / Others

The current (non) working of the MHRD IPR Chairs is one of the many ways the country is holding back on development of IPR research and policy in the country. Ideally, this development must be fast-paced. However, the lackadaisical nature of the entire institution of these IP Chairs has become even more evident recently and unfortunately there has been very little (no?) development at all. In November, 2014, the Centre for Internet and Society (CIS) carried a post highlighting how

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Barriers in Access to Medicine: Yet another Culprit – an Apathetic Government

/ By / Drug Regulation, Innovation, Patent

Patents impede access to affordable medications. This is now a well-established proposition, though the rate and extent of such impediment will vary from case to case. However, what of non-patent barriers? Unfortunately, this is a topic that has not received as much attention as patents in the mainstream debates. Below is a sorry story reflecting one of the biggest non patent barriers: namely, government apathy! This story begins with a detailed analysis by Vidya Krishnan in an article on LiveMint,

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‘Jan Aushadhi’ – an umbrella brand for generic medicines

/ By / Others

Government of India launched ‘Jan Aushadhi’ campaign to provide quality medicines at affordable prices to the masses. [For ToI report, see here.] The Centre will procure medicines in bulk from public as well as private drug manufacturing firms and rebrand them under ‘Jan Aushadhi’. These medicines will be sold in the retail market at a competitive price, allowing consumers to buy cheaper, quality product from the government. The aforesaid ‘Jan Aushadhi’ initiative is similar to the initiative launched by Kerala

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SpicyIP Tidbit: NLU-D releases Report on Online Intermediary Liability in India

/ By / Publication

Some rather interesting news has been brought to our notice – the Centre for Communication Governance at National Law University Delhi has just released a new report on Online Intermediary liability in India, written by Chinmayi Arun and Sarvjeet Singh. This is a part of a global research project by the Global Network of Internet and Society Research Centers  and the Berkman Center for Internet & Society at Harvard University examining the rapidly changing landscape of online intermediary liability, and aimed at informing and

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Many Shades of Grey: Omega v Costco and its Implications on Parallel Imports

/ By / Copyright

On January 20, 2015 the US Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit upheld Costco’s sale of Omega watches in the US, following the 2013 US Supreme Court decision in  Kirtsaeng v John Wiley & Sons. Both decisions uphold the principle of international exhaustion and hold that the first sale doctrine applies to goods manufactured abroad. The ruling in this case reaffirms that copyright holders cannot use their rights to fix resale prices in the downstream market. As IPKat notes

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Comments on the GIPC Index 2015, Part II – Misleading Indian IP

/ By / Innovation, Patent

The GIPC Index ranks India second from the last rank, by a margin of ‘.13’ which separates it from Thailand. Due to the inordinate, and entirely unnecessary news value that the Index has despite its fundamental flaws, this fact has garnered quite a lot of note in multiple media outlets. And the reactions seem to be the worst possible – most articles seem to be hailing this as a sign for India needing a stronger IP regime, without even going

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Comments on the GIPC Index 2015, Part I – Misleading Links

/ By / Copyright, Innovation, Others, Overlaps in IP, Patent

The relationship between intellectual property and innovation is complex and multifaceted, and in some cases, rather tenuous, as Shamnad Sir discusses in his excellent article here. The GIPC Index 2015, in one of the very few things it gets right, partially acknowledges this relationship – and yet, in the very same sentence, ignores the complexity of the debate. The GIPC Index this year leaves no doubt that it is voicing the perspective of industry and the corporate that it cares

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PPL v UOI: Delhi High Court

/ By / Copyright

In January this year, the Delhi High Court considered a matter between the Phonographic Performance Ltd. (‘PPL’) and the Union of India. The issue in the case was whether the Registrar of Copyrights (Respondent No.2) has the power to grant licences over and above those directed by the Copyright Board. The Delhi High Court did not decide this issue as it observed that the petitioners had challenged the very decision of the Copyright Board before the Madras High Court and

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Academia and Civil Society submit critical comments to DIPP on draft National IPR Policy [Part I]

/ By / Copyright, Innovation, Others, Patent, Trademark

As our readers may be aware, the DIPP had initiated public consultation on the drafting of India’s first National IPR policy in November 2014. The second round of consultation on the National IPR Draft Policy (draft policy) ended on January 31, 2015. Last week, we brought to you a guest post by Raghul Sudheesh who presented criticisms submitted by Prof. NS Gopalakrishnan, Director and Dr. TG Agitha, Associate Professor at Inter University Centre for Intellectual Property Rights Studies (IUCIPRS at

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