INDIAN GOVERNMENT COMMITTEE SAYS "NO" TO DATA EXCLUSIVITY

/ By / Data Exclusivity, Patent

After multiple deliberations spanning more than 3 years, a government committee has finally submitted its report on regulatory data protection and Article 39.3 of TRIPS. It finds that Article 39.3 does not require “data exclusivity” and that, at the present moment, it may not be in India’s national interest to grant “data exclusivity” to pharmaceutical drug data. It relies heavily on the Doha Declaration to support this interpretation. It argues that a “trade secrecy” form of protection is sufficient to …

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In the teeth of the issue

/ By / Uncategorized

The Delhi High court has injuncted Ajanta India Ltd. from using a red and white packaging for its toothpowder cans on the ground that the same infringes the trademarks and copyrights of Colgate-Palmolive and directed the former to file an affidavit of compliance. Ajanta was initially marketing its toothpowder in a red can. Recently, they switched over to a can which allegedly echoed the trade dress of the Colgate Toothpowder packaging in red and white colour combination. Colgate immediately brought …

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Spy.vs.Spy— Dynamics of Trade Secret Protection

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The ongoing case of Purolite vs. Thermax is yet another addition to the long litany of cases pertaining to the area of Trade Secret Protection. This one comes with an interesting cross-border aspect. Purolite, a world leader in the water treatment business has slapped a Corporate Espionage suit on the Indian held company Thermax. Both Companies engaged in similar areas of core competencies, it is alleged that Thermax instigated employees of Purolite to steal Intellectual Property that constitute vital Trade …

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Ebay and Rowling (Part II) – Confounding the Conundrum!

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As promised a few months ago, I bring you the final outcome of the eBay-Rowling controversy. In a detailed order running into 16 pages, the Delhi High Court has ruled on 31st May 2007 that …the responsibility and/or liability of the defendant No.5 who runs the said website (i.e. eBay) facilitating sale and purchase of goods and services by intending sellers and purchasers using its website, when such sale amounts to infringing the rights of others-like the present one where …

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Spy.vs.Spy — Dynamics Of Trade Secret Protection.

/ By / Uncategorized

The ongoing case of Purolite vs. Thermax is yet another addition to the long litany of cases pertaining to the area of Trade secret Protection. This one comes with an interesting cross-border aspect. Purolite, a world leader in the water treatment business has slapped a Corporate Espionage suit on the Indian held company Thermax. Both Companies engaged in similar areas of core competencies, it is alleged that Thermax instigated employees of Purolite to steal Intellectual Property that constitute vital Trade …

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USTR Special 301 Report, 2007 – Beyond the Ostensible!

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The annual Special 301 report, issued by the US Trade Representative’s Office has placed 12 countries on a special ‘priority watch list’ that will be monitored to ‘encourage and maintain’ effective intellectual property rights protection, Thailand being the only new addition to this list. Apart from this, 31 countries have been put on lower levels of monitoring. Arguably, the ‘priority watch list’ is based on the level of protection and enforcement of intellectual property rights in the respective countries. According …

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Rings on your fingers, Bells on your toes – Karimnagar goes for Silver

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Karimnagar a district in Andhra Pradesh has bagged a G.I for the fine filigree silver work that is typically manufactured in this area. It joins the elite list of G.I holders, which includes the Ikat of Pochampally and the Kondapalli toys. Sure to make shopping for silver trinkets and handicraft items in Hyderabad a more pleasurable experience, the silver digger can perhaps look forward to more authentic stuff. The Silver Products that are made in Karimnagar are delicate handicraft items …

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STRETCHING THE WRONG WAY!! METAPHYSICAL MUSINGS ON THE YOGA–PATENT CONTROVERSY

/ By / Copyright, Patent

The latest move by the government of India “to lodge its protest against yoga-related patents issued by the US Patents & Trademarks Office” prompted a number of emails to me this morning. Some even went to extent of suggesting: “Surely, if the government is taking this up, there must be some merit in this case”. If you really want to believe that a naked emperor is adorned with the finest clothes, be my guest!! It’s all a matter of perception …

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Postscript to A dash of yoga…

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Turns out I was wrong and Michael Moore had best pan his camera on this side of the world… Today’s Times of India (Front Page) reads: India to protest grant of yoga patents by US30 May, 2007, Sidhartha/TIMES NEWS NETWORK NEW DELHI: The Indian government has decided to lodge its protest against yoga-related patents issued by the US Patents & Trademarks Office. While the health ministry has decided to take up the issue directly with USPTO, the commerce department is …

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A dash of yoga and a whole lot of confusion

/ By / Copyright, Patent

The recent spate of posts on the now-dormant-now-alive issue of Bikram Yoga and the copyright battle in the US, especially Shamnad’s piece on the Suketu Mehta op-ed brings a related though slightly tangential issue to mind. One that Shamnad once described as the “doctrinal confusion” issue – albeit in a different context. I’ve seen this repeatedly in the Indian media. A tendency to confuse copyrights and patents and use both interchangeably. And it often does not stop there. It extends …

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