Intellectual Property Archives

Basic IP Practices for SMEs

This post was first published on August 6th, 2013. Intellectual Property (IP) can play an important role in taking a SME to the next level in business, provided the company takes the right steps in the right direction. While the nature of IP actions to be undertaken by an organisation varies from company to company, there are some basic practices that every company must take to keep the option of taking advantage of IP, open. The upcoming editions of…

July 25, 2019 BananaIP Reporter Intellectual Property, IP for Start Ups 0Comment 761Views 0Like

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The image depicts God. If the post is to be believed, the name of God van be trademarked too! Click on the image to read the full post.

Trademarking the Name of God? – Part 1

This post was first published on 2nd September, 2014. If there is one question that can spark a controversy, it must be this - Is it possible to trademark the name of God? Section 9(2) (b) of the Trade Marks Act, 1999, which deals with Absolute grounds for refusal of registration, mandates that a mark shall not be registered as a trademark if it contains any matter likely to hurt religious susceptibilities of any class or section of the citizens of India.…

July 25, 2019 BananaIP Reporter Intellectual Property, Trademarks 0Comment 2486Views 0Like

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This image depicts a bowl of jamuns. this post explores if jamuns can be patented. Click on the image to read the full post.

Strategy to Patent Jamun

This post was first published on 8th November, 2012. The Jamun patent saga, earlier reported to be the subject of government revocation has spurred discussions and debates across India on various counts, ranging from mode of revocation to CSIR's blind eye to Indian applications. My attempt in this post is not to add another opinion to the existing ones but to bring forth that a composition of Jamun can be susceptible to patent protection. All of us in India…

July 25, 2019 BananaIP Reporter Intellectual Property, Patents 0Comment 1234Views 0Like

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This image depicts managers in discussion.

They Are All Honourable Men

This post was first published on 10th July, 2012. The inevitable question once again - "How many IP managers know what they are doing with their IP?" While I am compelled to say all of them, it is sad that very few have a macro level picture. This opinion has not been pulled out of thin air, it is based on IP work of many professionals in the trenches. One reason for this gap, if I may call it…

July 25, 2019 BananaIP Reporter Intellectual Property 0Comment 620Views 0Like

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Harmonious Construction Can Ignore the Term Clause

This post was first published on 25th May, 2012. The plaintiff Shemaroo Entertainment Ltd. has filed this petition in the Delhi High court against Amit Sharma & others. The case has been decided on 16th May 2012. Shemaroo Entertainment Ltd. contended that it held copyrights over the song “Thodi si jo pee le hai” from the movie “Namak Halal” and prayed towards restraining the Defendants from using the “Thodi si jo pee le hai” in their film “Department”; from releasing or…

July 25, 2019 BananaIP Reporter Copyrights, Intellectual Property 0Comment 715Views 0Like

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This image depicts the 'Trademark' and 'Registered' symbols. This post is a part of a series on what marks are permissible as trademarks. Click on the image to read the full post.

Part III: Descriptive Marks

This post was first published on 8th September, 2014. In continuation to the earlier post where we covered the US approach towards protection of descriptive marks, in the current post, we will be analyzing the circumstances in which descriptive marks can be protected in the EU. The EU position towards descriptive marks is clearly stated under Article 7(1)(c) of the Council Regulation (EC) No. 207/2009, which is couched in the similar language as that of the provision in the Indian Trademarks Act 1999,…

July 25, 2019 BananaIP Reporter Intellectual Property, Trademarks 0Comment 827Views 0Like

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This image depicts Goddess Durga's face. This image is relevant for the post as it about trademarking the name of the Gods! Click on the image to read the full post.

Trademarking the Name of God? Huh! – Part 3

This post was first published on 8th September, 2014. In continuation to the previous post, we shall now have a look at other important cases where the issue of whether or not one can monopolize the name of the Creator by trademarking the name of God is discussed. In order to prevent unauthorized use of the picture of diety of Attukal Devi and description of "Sabarimala of Women / Streegalode Shabharimala (in Malayalam)", Attukal Bhagavathy Temple Trust has secured registration for the…

July 25, 2019 BananaIP Reporter Intellectual Property, Trademarks 0Comment 978Views 0Like

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This image depicts the Steam Engine invented by James Watt. This image is relevant as the post is about the invention which has brought the Industrial Revolution. Click on the image for more information

Invention that Revolutionized the Industrial Revolution!

This post was first published on 13th October, 2014. Most of us have learned about the Industrial Revolution that took place in the 18th and 19th centuries, that ultimately resulted in the transition to the new manufacturing processes found even today. While I was reading about the industrial revolution, the question that flashed in my mind was, "Is there any invention that fueled the revolution?". Well, surprisingly (or not), the answer is a Yes! It's nothing but the Steam Engine. Let…

July 25, 2019 BananaIP Reporter Intellectual Property, Patents 0Comment 1427Views 0Like

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Patentability of Higher Life Forms

This post was first published on 5th September, 2014. Today we will be discussing a case where the patent grant was rejected by the Canadian Patent Office as higher life forms are patent ineligible subject matter under the Act. Canada (Commissioner of Patents) (Appellants) vs. President & Fellows of Harvard College (Respondents) Case: The case was about a patent application filed by the Harvard College for a transgenic mouse. In the transgenic mouse, the genome was genetically altered with the insertion of an oncogene.…

July 25, 2019 BananaIP Reporter Intellectual Property, Patents 0Comment 1103Views 0Like

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Can there be a Patent for a Method of Patent Trolling?

This post was first published on 11th October, 2014. How about committing the crime of killing all the criminals so as to prevent crime? Sounds outrageous, doesn't it? Well, then how about patenting the patent troll in order to prevent patent trolling? The USPTO is proof enough for granting some of the weirdest and craziest patents. But this one seems to be the cherry on the icing on the cake. Halliburton Energy Services Inc. has made an Application No. 11/741429 before the…