Significant modifications to the Indian patent system have been made with the publication of the Patent (Amendment) Rules, 2024 in the Indian Gazette. Regarding intellectual property rights (IPR), 2023 was a historic year in India, demonstrating the country’s dedication to invention and innovation. The electrical and allied fields of invention received the most significant number of patents—47,993—followed by the mechanical (37,714), chemical sciences (12,028), and biotech (3,576) categories.
Key Amendments
- New Request for Examination Timeline: A patent application’s Request for Examination (RFE) submission deadline has been pushed back from 48 months to 31 months, starting on the earliest priority date.
- Simplified Applications: Using Form 3, patent applicants must now provide information on matching applications twice.
- The “Certificate of Inventorship“ is a new measure that recognises inventors’ contributions to patented innovations.
- Diminished Upfront Renewal Costs: If renewal fees are paid electronically in advance for a minimum of four years, a 10% discount is available.
- Reduced Frequency of Patent Working Statements: Instead of being filed annually, working patent statements only need to be filed every three fiscal years.
- Increased Authority of the Controller: The Controller can now forgive delays for six months and extend stipulated times.
- Modifications to Opposition Procedures: Both the pre-grant and post-grant opposition procedures now have a longer response period for applicants and a shorter deadline for recommendations from an opposition board to be submitted.
What are Patents?
- An innovation can only be used by the owner of the patent, which is a government-granted legal privilege that gives the inventor or assignee temporary exclusivity over the invention.
- It gives the patent owner the authority to prohibit third parties from producing, utilising, importing, or selling the innovation without their consent.
- Territory rights are embodied in patents. Generally, an exclusive patent is only valid in the nation or territory where it was filed and approved.
What is the Indian Patent Regime?
- Indian patents are governed by the Indian Patent Act of 1970.
- India has progressively positioned itself by international intellectual property rights regimes.
- After joining the World Trade Organisation on January 1, 1995, India became a party to the Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) Agreement in 1995.
- It’s interesting to note that pharmaceutical products were not given patent protection under the original Indian Patents Act, despite this being done to guarantee affordable access to medications.
- Following the 2005 amendment, pharmaceutical patent protection was reinstated to comply with TRIPS.
Agreements
Additionally, India has ratified several IPR-related conventions, including-
- Convention of Berne (1886): Established in 1886, the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works is an international agreement that governs copyright.
- Budapest Treaty (1977): By offering a centralised deposit system for distributing and storing biological materials, it seeks to promote the recognition of microorganism-related patents on a global scale.
- Paris Agreement for Industrial Property Protection (1883): It attempts to bring its member nations’ industrial property protections—including trade secrets, industrial designs, patents, and trademarks—to a uniform and standardised level.
- Treaty on Patent Cooperation (1970): A single system for submitting an international patent application is provided by this international treaty, managed by the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) and aims to streamline the process of filing patent applications across national borders.
A Quick Comparison
Legality
Patents: Patents Act, 1970
Copyright: Copyright Act, 1957
Trade Secrets: Common law, contracts
Tenure of Protection
Patents: 20 years
Copyright: Author’s lifetime + 60 years
Trade Secrets: Indefinite
Type of Protection
Patents: Inventions, processes, methods
Copyright: Literary, artistic, and musical works
Trade Secrets: Confidential information
Eligibility Requirements for protection
Patents: Novelty, Inventiveness
Copyright: Originality, Fixation
Trade Secrets: Confidentiality
Eligibility to register
Patents: Mandatory
Copyright: Voluntary (Automatic)
Trade Secrets: Not Compulsory but advised
Protection areas
Patents: Technical
Copyright: Expressing ideas
Trade Secrets: Unauthorised use/ disclosure
Enforcement
Patents: Patent protection via the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) and other international agreements
Copyright: Recognised internationally via the Berne Convention and other treaties
Trade Secrets: vary based on laws and regulations of individual countries
