Newsletter - India IP SME Helpdesk

The Helpline service provides first-line assistance on Intellectual Property protection and IP rights enforcement in India. All questions sent through this service will receive a tailor-made answer by our IP experts or it will be signposted to appropriate organisations within no more than 3 working days.

In June, European Commission Executive Vice-President Valdis Dombrovskis and Indian Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal formally relaunched EU-India negotiations on a balanced, ambitious, comprehensive, and mutually beneficial free trade agreement. Now, the two parties concluded the first round of negotiations for these India-EU Trade and Investment Agreements, including the Geographical Indications (GIs), in New Delhi on July 1.

The Kerala High Court has directed the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) in India to contemplate the compulsory licensing of the breast cancer-saving drug Ribociclib. Currently enjoying a patent monopoly, breast cancer drug Ribociclib cannot be manufactured in India without the consent of the patent holder.

A recent article in the Economic Times sheds light on India's innovation journey and progress in terms of start-ups and producing unicorns. Despite some positive developments, the two authors from the Institute for Competitiveness in India argue that expenditure on Research and Development needs to increase to boost India's innovation culture.

The World Trade Organization (WTO) recently approved a package of agreements that included the long-debated vaccine patent waiver. However, according to the Indian Trade Minister Piyush Goyal the agreement is only 'half-baked' and comes much too late.

When a patented invention was already in use by another operator of the market, patentability principles such as novelty and disclosure come into play to determine the prior users right to continue their commercial activities and even the validity of the later patent application.

Registering your trade mark in India is the most efficient way to secure exclusive rights over the name and logo of your business, thereby stopping third parties from copying them. We've created a short video explaining how to go about it.

A French SME with a global reputation for developing computer programmes for the modelling, simulation and creation of products in a three-dimensional environment sought to expand its presence in the Indian market, it then had to take the relevant steps to protect its copyright against infringers in India.

In this new case study, we explore why in India copyright and industrial design protection are not complementary and how to act to avoid problems with the protection of your designs. At the core of the study is an independent European boutique designer, that decided to expand its business operations to India as it had identified a high demand for international good quality designer products. Find out more!

Do not miss our two latest publications addressing employee confidentiality obligations in India and pitfalls and challenges when registering a trademark in India.

On the occasion of the leading international trade fair for technical textiles and non-wovens "TechTextil" from 21-24 June 2022 in Frankfurt (DE) and the "International Conference for Smart Textiles InMotion" from 21-23 September 2022 in Weimar (DE), the Enterprise Europe Network is organising an international brokerage event “Technical & Smart Textile” for companies, research institutions and all stakeholders who want to explore joint projects, technical cooperation or new business contacts with partners from Europe and worldwide. Interested parties can register for this free event with their cooperation profile on the online event platform until 20 September 2022 and select interesting participants for bilateral meetings.

From key IP challenges faced by SMEs when entering the Indian market to IP issues in the Indian cosmetics, e-mobility or biotech industry: our training sessions cover a broad range of sectors and topics linked to IP management and protection in India. You missed some of our past "live" training sessions? No problem, just browse through our workshop recordings and learn more about your favourite topic wherever and whenever you like.

Do you need intellectual property support for registering your trade marks, patents, designs and copyright in India? Book an online meeting with our IP experts and get free and confidential advice on how to manage and protect your IP rights in the Indian market.