INSIGHTS

Introduction : In today’s globalised and competitive market, trademarks are not just mere symbols or words of trade but have emerged as powerful business assets that carry with themselves brand values, market reputation and an extraordinary commercial value. However, due to factors like international trade, a greater evolution in the categories of goods and services, an adequate and a consistent trademark classification system is required to potentially simplify different cla

Introduction : In April 2023, the Indian Space Policy allowed private companies to use the country’s launch vehicles, satellites and rockets, ending ISRO’s monopoly. This landmark policy indicates a shift from operational missions to advanced research and commercialisation. Within the next two years, the ISRO’s commercial arm, New Space India Limited, has registered over 70 technology transfer agreements with private entities. While this framework was meant to provide a comme

Introduction : Intellectual property is part of corporate transactions like acquisitions and joint ventures, but now it is a prominent asset in corporate transactions. A franchise of trademark, a portfolio of patents, and a proprietary codebase may be more valuable than the business itself. Unlike land and machinery, IP asset is an intangible business asset. Its value is in the statutory and contractual title that is granted to it. Incomplete or defective title may not entitl

Introduction : There is a peculiar relationship between trademark law and domain names. Trademark laws were built for a physical world of labels, packaging and shop frontages. On the other hand, a domain name is a human readable numeric IP address within ICANN’s domain name system. However, when a consumer types a bank’s name, for instance, in a browser address bar, they are placing exactly the kind of source identifying trust in that string of characters that trademark law h

Introduction : The current food industry is not defined by culinary expertise alone, but rather by the power of brand. It might be hard for a customer to recollect all ingredients used in making a particular burger or the spices added to the signature curry, but they will remember where they bought it from. This transition from product recognition to source recognition makes trademarks not just a formal procedure in the process of doing business, but one of the most valuable

Introduction : University spin-offs find themselves at a tricky junction, having valuable and innovative inventions but limited funding and fast deadlines in commercialization process. They do not have resources to “blanket file” patent applications as corporations can to preserve the possibility of obtaining protection in various countries. It should be strategically chosen which patents will be sought for in which time frame. Luckily, there are international mechanisms that

Introduction : For many years, the Indian trademark register had been characterised by an apparent contradiction. On the one hand, there were those who adopted and used marks in the ordinary course of trade. On the other hand, there were registrations on a “proposed to be used” basis which remained uncommercialised but continued to stand in the way of subsequent registrations. The situation is made worse where such registrations remain alive as mere defensive acquisitions or

Introduction : Indian Real Estate emerging as a key pillar to the economy of the nation has been resistant to the prevailing economic uncertainty. This is because of the intangibility, wealth creation, lower fluctuations, future stability, leverage opportunities, portfolio diversification and other features that are attached to it. According to people there is an inherent aspect of stability and protection that comes in combo with such investments. But this stability is not i

Introduction : Intellectual Property (IP) has evolved from being a protection tool to a commercial asset, and a powerful tool for long term business growth in the modern business landscape. In today's day and age, where innovation is becoming a key factor in any organisation's competitiveness, firms have turned to not only developing intellectual property but also developing effective strategies for its commercialisation. Intellectual property commercialization is the commerc

Introduction : A U.S. District Court in Wisconsin last ordered a company based in Michigan to pay $19.2 million to Harley-Davidson in April of 2018. At first glance, it sounds like a counterfeiting tale: a print-on-demand site ended up allowing people to print Bar & Shield logos on hoodies and mugs, and they were discovered. The interesting aspect of H-D U.S.A., LLC v. SunFrog, LLC is that it is not the size of the check itself. But the court came to this conclusion under a f

Introduction : Are Relaxed Rules Truly Startup-Friendly ? Starting a business in India was really tough because you had to deal with a lot of rules and regulations. For people who wanted to start a business on their own or with a team the One-Person Company and the Limited Liability Partnership were the easiest options. Now the government has made some changes to make these options even better for startups. But are these changes helpful ? Lets first understand what One - Per

Introduction : There is an irreversible transformation taking place in the realm of intellectual property. Traditionally, the task of conducting patent searches has been extremely difficult, extremely time-consuming, based on sophisticated Boolean expressions and classificatory codes, and frustratingly dependent upon the element of luck. Lawyers and researchers who conduct patent searches devote weeks to going through hundreds or even thousands of patents and hoping that thei