The Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP) recently published a discussion paper on standard essential patents (SEPs) and their availability on fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory (FRAND) terms. The paper published on 01-March-2016 invites views from the concerned stakeholders regarding Standard Essential Patents and the issues surrounding them. This post is the first part in the series of posts to come that will discuss on the concept of SEPs. This post therefore will provide an introduction to Standrad Essential Patents and…

Hello there dear readers. This post commemorates every woman without whom man would probably find life an impossible experience. There are no second thoughts that over the last few decades or so, women have come on par with men in almost every field. Be it sports, arts or literature, women are giving their male counterparts a run for their money. Women these days hold some of the top positions in several big business organizations and women entrepreneurs are continuously setting…

Fabrics that can save lives were unthinkable before the 19th century! Many soldiers and law officers are indebted to one woman's invention which has saved their lives, time and again. Stephanie Kwolek, one of the first women research chemists, was a famous inventor who gained national recognition in 1960 for her work with long molecule chains at low temperatures. In 1971, she made a very important discovery which led to the invention of Kevlar, a synthetic material that is five…

“We must look to the limitless potential that lies ahead. To win the future, we must equip the young women of today with the knowledge, skills and equal access to reach for the promise of tomorrow” - President Barack Obama It might come as a surprise to some of us but it was actually against the law for women to file patents in their own names, until the late 1800s. This meant that they had to file their inventions under…

"Women are always saying, 'We can do anything that men can do.' But Men should be saying, 'We can do anything that women can do.'" —Gloria Steinem Hello readers, as most of us may know 8th March is celebrated as International Women’s day. The day is celebrated to honour women’s achievements all over the world, without any regards to restrictions like race, language, ethnicity etc. Even though the International Women’s Day celebration has its roots in the activities of labour…

The launch of Freedom 251, the Rs. 251 (about 4 dollars) mobile phone has set off a storm in India. Consumers eager to get one for themselves have been hounding the website in numbers that the website has now crashed. Ringing Bells, the company that launched the phone, has either not planned, or not expected such a response. While Ringing Bells tries to clear out the web crash issue, trouble has started brewing from IP quarters. Many IP and patent…