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INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY HANDBOOK

CONTENTS INTRODUCTION

INTRODUCTION 1
PATENT 3
TRADEMARK 9
COPYRIGHT 14
INDUSTRIAL DESIGN 18

Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) enable the protection and promotion of

creativity. With its increasing importance in recent times, it has enabled
people to gain recognition as well as financial benefits by virtue of their
creations.

Protecting your intellectual property is of insurmountable importance. It not only

gives you financial benefits but it also gives you the exclusive right to use your
invention or creation.

Disclaimer: The information in this document may not be reproduced in whole, or in part, nor may any of the IPR thus acts as an incentive for innovation. Just like the benefits you reap from
information contained therein be disclosed without the prior consent of Intepat IP Services. The contents tangible property, intellectual property enables you to reap the same benefits
of this document have not been independently verified and they do not purport to be comprehensive,
or to contain all the information that a prospective investor may need. No representation, warranty or from your intangible property.
undertaking, expressed or implied is or will be made or given and no responsibility or liability is or will be
accepted by the Company or by any of its directors, employees or advisors in relation to the accuracy or The subject-matter of intellectual property rights may be inventions, brand
completeness of this document or any other written or oral information made available in connection with
the Company. Any form of reproduction, dissemination, copying, disclosure, modification, distribution and
names, artistic and literary works or designs, i.e. patents, trademarks, copyrights
or publication of this material is strictly prohibited. Publication release: August 2016. or industrial designs.

www.intepat.com 1
DID YOU KNOW? PATENT
1. Intellectual Property is divided into two categories:
(a) Industrial Property - patents, trademarks, industrial designs and
geographical indications.
(b) Copyright - literary work, artistic work and architectural design.
Copyright also includes the rights of performers and broadcasters.

2. Intellectual property was first recognized in the Paris Convention for

Protection of Industrial Property (1883) and Berne Convention for
Protection of Literary and Artistic Works.

Both these Treaties were administered by the World Intellectual Property

3. Organization.

Each category of intellectual property has separate requirements

and a separate process for legal recognition. To know more on any
category of IPR, read on!

Inventions are an integral part of the economy. They provide a benchmark

for determining the technological progress of an economy.

Endowing the inventor with the exclusive right to use the invention acts as an
incentive for people to invent.

With more inventions, the economy progresses at a faster pace. Such is the
importance of inventions in today’s world.

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 WHAT IS A PATENT? 3. Industrial application - The invention must be capable of being
A patent is an exclusive right conferred by the Government on an used materially. It must have practical application.
inventor, to use his invention. A patent is usually granted for a limited
period of time. If the invention meets all three requirements then it can be patented.

A patent protects the invention from being used by any unauthorized QUICK LINKS
person. This means that unless a patent owner specifically authorizes
For comprehensive information on what cannot be patented
a person, nobody can produce, sell, distribute, import or even use the
www.intepat.com/blog/patent/patent-law-in-india/
patented invention.

WHAT IS THE NEED FOR A PATENT? HOW DOES AN INVENTOR GET A PATENT?
Getting a Patent is admittedly expensive. Then why go through the Getting a patent for an invention can take 5-7 years. As per the Patent
trouble of getting one? (Amendment) Rules, 2016, only e-filing of patents is allowed from
16.05.2016. Registering a patent requires the inventor to follow a
There is a two-pronged answer to this. First, a patent on the invention series of comprehensive steps listed on the official website.
endows the inventor with the exclusive right to use the invention. After
all the hard work put into inventing, the inventor would not want just
QUICK LINKS
anybody to replicate the invention right? Second, getting a patent
means that the inventor can license his invention to other people. To understand how and where to file a patent
Consequently the inventor gets a royalty for licensing your invention. www.intepat.com/blog/patent/filing-patent-application-in-india/
For detailed information on the steps involved in e-filing
Simply put, by getting a patent, the inventor not only protect the www.intepat.com/blog/patent/e-filing-patent-application-in-india/
invention, but also makes money on it.

QUICK LINKS WHAT IS THE TERM OF VALIDITY OF A PATENT?

Once registered, a patent is valid for 20 years from the date of filing
For detailed information on how to capitalize on a patent the application for registration of the patent.
www.intepat.com/blog/patent/patent-license-resource/

WHAT ARE THE REQUIREMENTS FOR AN INVENTION TO

BE PATENTABLE?
DID YOU KNOW?
In order to be patentable, the invention has to satisfy three criteria: The first Legislation in India relating to Patents was the Act VI of 1856.
1. Novel (Non-obvious) - The invention cannot be known or be
1. It was enacted with the objective of inducing inventors to disclose the
obvious in the public forum, throughout the world. secret of their inventions and to encourage new inventions.
2. Inventive step - The invention has to have an improvement over
and above any existing product or process that is already available. 2. The Patent (Amendment) Rules, 2016 has introduced a new category of
Applicant- startups. The fee for a Startup is the same as the fees for a
Just an improvement is not sufficient. The improvement should not
be obvious to any person skilled in the same field as the invention natural person. Refer to this for a detailed description of the Patent fee
pertains to. for different categories of Applicants.

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FURTHER READING TRADEMARK
• Patent Search Services
www.intepat.com/ip-services/patent-search-india/
• Patent Prosecution Services
www.intepat.com/ip-services/patent-prosecution/
• PCT Application in India
www.intepat.com/ip-services/patent-prosecution/pct-application-india/
• How to Conduct Patent Search in India?
www.intepat.com/blog/patent/conduct-indian-patent-search/
• Patent Fees For Obtaining a Patent in India
www.intepat.com/blog/patent/patent-fees-india-obtaining-patent/
• Patent Filing: Individual name Vs Business name
www.intepat.com/blog/patent/patent-filing-patent-application-name/
• Inventions Not Patentable in India
www.intepat.com/blog/patent/inventions-not-patentable-india/
• Understanding the Indian Patent Regime
www.intepat.com/blog/patent/patent-law-in-india/
• Patent Filing Procedure in India
www.intepat.com/blog/patent/patent-application-filing-procedure-india/
• How to File an International Patent?
www.intepat.com/blog/patent/file-international-patent/

Whether online or physical retails, the number of people who have goods
or services to offer to the public is ever increasing. In this situation it
becomes very important for organizations to offer quality goods and
services.

Now, given the fact that an organization offers high quality goods or services,
it would definitely not want someone else to capitalize on it reputation.

That is precisely why organizations have to protect their goods and services
with a brand name or a trademark.

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 WHAT IS A TRADEMARK? trademark by registering it, rather than take the risk of exposing it to
A Trademark is defined in the Trademark Act as a mark that is capable potential infringers.
of distinguishing the goods and services of one person from that of
another. Simply put, any mark that tells the public that the goods or WHAT IS THE PROCEDURE TO REGISTER A TRADEMARK?
services belong to a particular company, is a trademark. Before filing for getting a trademark registered, a trademark search
needs to be conducted. This search is to determine whether the mark
A trademark can be a device, heading, label, ticket, name, signature, to be registered is available or not. Public search of trademarks must
word, letter, numerical, shape of goods, packaging or combination of be done on the website www.ipindia.nic.in
colors or any such combination.
If the trademark is available, an application needs to be filed before
This means that a trademark does not have to be a word, it can be a the jurisdictional trademark registry. A trademark examiner will
logo, device mark or any of the things listed above. examine the trademark and post an Examination Report. If objections
are raised in the Examination report, the applicant needs to respond
WHAT IS THE NEED FOR A TRADEMARK? to the objections. If the Registrar is satisfied with the response he will
A trademark is needed to define ownership for products or services. publish the Trademark in the Journal. After publication, any third-party
People need to associate goods with a specific company. A trademark can object to the registration of the trademark, if they find that the
makes that possible. It is like an identity for a company that bridges trademark might infringe their mark. After resolution of the third-party
the gap between the public and the company. The importance of opposition the trademark will be registered.
a trademark for business in the current economy cannot be over-
emphasized. E-filing of a Trademark eases the registration process to a certain
extent.
IS IT NECESSARY TO REGISTER A TRADEMARK?
Suppose ‘Company-A’ has a flourishing business that offers high QUICK LINKS
quality goods. ‘Company-A’ decides not to register the trademark and For detailed information on e-filing of a Trademark
continue with its business. A few years later, ‘Company-B’ produces www.intepat.com/blog/trademark/online-trademark-registration-india/
the same goods as ‘Company-A’, but of a lower quality, and decides
to capitalize on Company-A’s reputation and begins to use its This procedure will take more than a year on the whole. The IPR Policy
(unregistered) trademark. Company-A’s business takes a hit because of 2016 has proposed to reduce the registration time for a trademark
the people begin to think that the inferior quality goods belong to to 1 month.
Company-A’s. What do Company-A do?
The procedure to register a trademark can be a cause for confusion.
Company-A files a case against Company-B for passing off. Cases for It is always better to engage professional help through the process of
passing off are usually harder to prove. However, even if a company registration. Engaging professional help will increase the chances of
does win the case, no damages are awarded. The infringer will only be getting a trademark registered.
restrained from using the mark any longer.

On the flip side, had Company-A registered its mark, it could have
WHAT IS THE TERM OF VALIDITY OF A TRADEMARK?
Once registered, a trademark is valid for 10 years, after which it needs
sued the infringer for trademark infringement. Cases of trademark
to be renewed every 10 years.
infringement are relatively easy to prove. They also have the added
benefit of entitlement to damages. It is always better to protect a

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 DID YOU KNOW?
Registration of a Trademark is a long process that takes anywhere
1. between 18-24 months. If the National IPR Policy, 2016 comes into effect
the whole registration period will be reduced to just 1 month!

2. Trademarks are territorial in nature. This means that statutory protection

is given only in the countries where the Trademark is registered. So, if
you want to prevent a cross-border infringement of your Trademark, it is
important that you register it in every country where you want to use it.

FURTHER READING
• Trademark Search Services
www.intepat.com/ip-services/trademark-india/trademark-search-india/
• Trademark Registration Services
www.intepat.com/ip-services/trademark-india/trademark-registration-india/
• Process: Trademark Registration in India
www.intepat.com/blog/trademark/procedure-trademark-registration-india/
• Trademark Registration Fees in India
www.intepat.com/blog/trademark/trademark-registration-cost-india/
• How to Check Trademark Application Status in India?
www.intepat.com/blog/trademark/trademark-application-status-india/
• What cannot be registered as a Trademark?
www.intepat.com/blog/trademark/what-cannot-registered-trademark/
• Difference between TM and ® symbols
www.intepat.com/blog/trademark/difference-r-tm-symbol/
• Trade name Vs Trademark
www.intepat.com/blog/trademark/trade-name-vs-trademark/
• Filing An International Trademark Under The Madrid Protocol?
The key to ensuring the registration of your Trademark is to www.intepat.com/blog/trademark/filing-madrid-trademark-application-india/
choose an invented or arbitrary word, as opposed to a generic
or common word. Invented and arbitrary words rate high on the
scale of registrability.

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 COPYRIGHT WHAT IS THE NEED FOR A COPYRIGHT?
A copyright protects an artist’s creative manifestation. Getting a
copyright not only protects the artist’s work from being used by a
third party, it also gives him / her the exclusive rights to use, perform,
distribute, translate and adapt that work. Nobody can use the artist’s
work unless it is specifically licensed to them. The essence of copyright
law is to ensure that the artist enjoys the credit of his / her hard work.

IS IT NECESSARY TO REGISTER A COPYRIGHT?

A copyright comes into existence as soon as an artist creates his . her
work. The artist is the owner of the work that is created and hence the
copyright rests with him / her.

There is no formal requirement of registration to get a Copyright.

However, official recognition makes it easy for the artist to prove that
he / she are the creator of a work.

If someone begins to use the work without permission and a case

is filed against that person, a registration certificate is prima facie
evidence that the work belongs to the artist. Therefore it is always
better to register at copyright.

WHAT IS THE PROCEDURE TO REGISTER A COPYRIGHT?

A copyright can be registered by manual filing or e-filing. The artist
needs to submit an Application form along with the prescribed fees.

The Statement of Particulars and the Statement of Further Particulars

must be duly filled in and sent in triplicate.

After filing for a copyright the Applicant has to wait for a mandatory
period of one month for any objections that might be filed before the
Copyright office with regard to the ownership of the work.
WHAT IS A COPYRIGHT?
A copyright is that part of intellectual property that protects creative
If objections are filed the Applicant has to wait for a further period of
works. It is a bundle of rights given to the creators of literary, artistic,
one month for the Copyright office to determine the registrability of
dramatic and musical works and the producers of cinematograph films
the work, after giving a hearing to both the parties involved.
and sound recordings.
Subsequently the Application is set for examination. If any discrepancy
A copyright is referred to as a bundle of rights because it endows on
is found a further period of one month is given to the Applicant to
the creator a number of rights. These rights are exclusive only to the
rectify the discrepancy. Then, your copyright will be registered.
creator of the work.

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 WHAT IS THE TERM OF VALIDITY OF A COPYRIGHT? FURTHER READING
Generally a copyright is valid for a period of 60 years. Insofar as original
literary, dramatic, musical and artistic works, the term of 60 years is • Copyright Registration Services
calculated from the year following the death of the author. www.intepat.com/ip-services/copyright-registration-india/
• Demystifying Copyrights For The Common Man
In the case of cinematograph films, sound recordings, photographs,
www.intepat.com/blog/copyright/demystifying-copyright-india/
posthumous publications, anonymous & pseudonymous publications,
works of government and works of international organizations, the 60- • Emerging Trends in Digital Copyright Law India
year period is counted from the date of publication. www.intepat.com/blog/copyright/emerging-trends-digital-copyright-law-india/

QUICK LINKS
Handbook of Copyright Law
www.copyright.gov.in/documents/handbook.html

DID YOU KNOW?

The concept that Copyright does not require any formal registration in
1. order to exist was introduced by the Berne Convention for Protection of
Literary and Artistic Works (1886)

2. It is important to remember that you cannot copyright an idea. Only your

original expression of an idea is what can be registered as a copyright.
So, even an old idea can be the subject-matter of a copyright as long as
your expression of the idea is original.

3. Even unpublished works can be registered as a copyright.

4. E-filing for Copyright was introduced on 14.02.2014

Section 52 of the Copyright Act, 1957enumerates a list of exceptions

5. to copyright infringement. Fair dealing is arguably the widest statutory
exception as no definition is accorded to fair dealing.

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 INDUSTRIAL DESIGN

WHAT IS INDUSTRIAL DESIGN?

According to the Designs Act, 2000 a Design is defined as “the features
of shape, configuration, pattern or ornament or composition of lines
or color or combination thereof applied to any article whether two
dimensional or three dimensional or in both forms, by any industrial
process or means, whether manual, mechanical or chemical, separate
or combined, which in the finished article appeal to and are judged
solely by the eye”

Simply put, a design is the overall visual appearance of the product

that is unique to the product. The uniqueness to the appearance may
be rendered by the shape, combination of colors, composition of lines
and the like. The important point is that the design must be capable of
being applied to an article. This means that the design cannot exist in
abstract; it must be applied whether to a two-dimensional or a three-
dimensional article.

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 WHAT IS THE NEED TO REGISTER A DESIGN?
Design enhances the aesthetic value of a product. Most consumers NOTES
base their purchase decisions on the way in which a product looks.

Given the importance a design has on the decision-making of

consumers, it is only fair to protect original and unique designs by
conferring their right to use on the creators.

Even if the design of a product is copied, it can have an adverse effect

on the business of the creator of the design.

WHAT IS THE PROCEDURE TO REGISTER A DESIGN?

Refer to the flow chart overleaf for the design registration process

WHAT IS THE TERM OF VALIDITY OF A DESIGN?

A Design is valid for a period of 10 years from the date of registration.
This initial period of registration may be extended by further period of
5 years on an Application to the Controller.

FURTHER READING
• Industrial Design Services
www.intepat.com/ip-services/industrial-design-registration-india/
• Industrial Design Registration in India: Meaning and Significance
www.intepat.com/blog/design/industrial-design-registration-india/
• Industrial Design Registration Process in India
www.intepat.com/blog/design/industrial-design-registration-process-india/
• Industrial Design Fee Structure in India
www.intepat.com/blog/design/industrial-design-e-filing-fee-structure-in-india/

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 ABOUT INTEPAT IP SERVICES
Intepat IP Services Pvt Ltd (“Intepat®”)
is a niche intellectual property services company
that provides a broad range of customized
services in Intellectual Property matters, that
includes patents, trademarks,
copyright and industrial design.

We strive to develop an in-depth understanding

of each client’s business and to deliver
intellectual property services in the manner that
best suits the needs of each individual client.

Our customized and cost-effective approach has

enabled our clients to transform their ideas and
innovations, into business opportunities.

Our clients, from Fortune 500 to SME’s to

Individual Inventors, are active in a broad variety
of technical and scientific areas.

LOCATION
Intepat IP Services Pvt Ltd
No:8, 1st Floor, 15th Cross
100 Feet Ring Road, JP Nagar 6th Phase
Bengaluru - 560078, INDIA

CONTACT US
+91-80-42173649 / 9632786810
[email protected]

www.intepat.com