With Artificial intelligence (AI) replacing humans in myriad sectors and operational aspects, it is not surprising that AI is able to concoct its own inventions. AI-generated inventions are (and may become) the norm, however, awarding inventorship to AI under the current patent system is far-fetched. So, is it justifiable denying patent rights to the actual inventor for inventions created by AI or does the patent system merely operate on the fact that AI is a machine with no capability to exercise legal rights even if given any, and therefore unfit to hold inventorship for its creations.

Indian resident inventors may decide to file patent applications in multiple countries including India or entirely disregard India and go international! This may be due to weak market strength/poor demand for the product/invention in the country.

As per Indian Patents Act, it is mandatory to obtain an Foreign Filing License (FFL) if an Indian resident inventor decides to first file in a foreign country bypassing Indian Patent Office(IPO) . As per the rules, within 21 days of requesting for an FFL, the IPO, usually, either issues the FFL certificate or rejects the FFL request.

Another option is to first file in India and then wait for a cooling-off period (six weeks!) before attempting to file in a foreign country. In this case, an FFL is not required.

-IPproTeam

#Patent101, #FFL, #First Filing, #Patent Office, #Foreign Filing License, #Indian Patent Office, #IPO, #Indian Resident,           # Patent Filing, #Filing, #Invention, #Technology, #Secrecy Provision 

Cyber laws are defined under the Information Technology (IT) Act of 2000 encompassing legal and regulatory aspects of the internet and the world wide web. However, certain entities/intermediaries such as e-commerce websites, search engines, and data aggregators sometimes come under scrutiny for violation of IPR laws when seen under the light of IT Act. Hence, protection to intermediaries from liability, arising out of content posted by users, needs be addressed by creating nexus between IT Act and IPR laws.

India has been grappling with big IP giants such as the US to establish its stance on the IP front. Owing to a fallible IP regime, India has yet again come under the US’s Priority Watch List and is required to meet certain expectations of the US in terms of trade and other IPR related policies. However, the question still remains whether India, being a sovereign nation, should let itself be subdued by the US or have its own say in IP matters concerning the nation. 

The inquiries related to what can constitute an abstract idea under USC 101 for determining patent eligibility have been prevalent for many years and the USPTO, to deal with this, has issued guidelines for inventions involving abstract ideas based on available jurisprudence. 

It is interesting to note that in spite of having different court cases as precedents for determining patent eligibility in this regard, the interpretation of abstract ideas at the USPTO has more or less been subjective.

Due to this the system has been trying to evolve to provide a more concrete and equitable framework which will help innovators, at the same time ensuring that abstract concepts are not monopolized.

The Indian Patent Office joins patent prosecution highway (PPH): As of November 2019, a PPH programme (on a pilot basis) has been agreed upon and signed between the IPO and the Japan Patent Office for a period of 3 years. Under the PPH program, applicants are provided with an opportunity to apply for expedited examinations in India providing relevant documents in a timely manner. Since this is a pilot program, only a limited number of applications are accepted in a year and it is also restricted to certain technical fields.

The PPH program has the potential to aid the IPO in processing the eligible patent applications in a speedy manner. The most important benefit of this program is the significant reduction in the timeline for processing the patent applications. This will provide opportunities to Indian inventors including MSMEs and Start-ups to get accelerated examination of their patent applications in India and Japan for securing their innovations and in-turn growing their businesses.

With the inception of Blockchain into the technology sector, several industries have embraced the amazing facets that the technology brought in, from merely being a storage solution to offering its platform to host several applications. Having said this, it is essential to bring out the fact that patents are the only way to protect Blockchain-based innovations that an industry might come up with. However, in light of the patent laws in India and elsewhere, it has always been a bumpy road to obtaining patents for Blockchain-based innovations. Considering the Indian patent laws, Section 3(k) bars patenting of software per se, so unless Blockchain-based innovations are able to exemplify a technical effect/technical advance over existing art or are able to show that they provide technical solution to a technological problem, they are considered patent ineligible as per section 3(K). In view of this, there seems to be some hope for protecting commendable inventions in this technology so as to endorse the technology and foster its improvement.

-Authors: Emily Premkumar | Gaurav Banerjee | Gaurisha Kaushik | Nethravathi D

#section3(k) #3(k) #software-per-se #blockchain #softwarepatents #patentability #IPO #India #CRI

As the huge wave of COVID-19 infections is devouring the world, there is an overwhelming need for relief measures: drugs/therapeutics, vaccines, diagnostic kits and other treatment aids such as ventilators/respirators.

The biggest question is whether these relief measures are easily available for tackling the pandemic or are we stuck behind patent rights from gaining access to protected drugs and/or diagnostic aids. This article discusses the provisions available in the patent laws of jurisdictions like India and the US, for overcoming barriers associated with patent rights during the times of extreme urgency.

-Author: Emily Premkumar 

#Covid-19, #Novelcoronavirus, #patentrights, #india, #IPO, #USPTO, #US, #extremeurgency

The novel coronavirus epidemic is continuing to spread across the globe with the number of confirmed cases of the coronavirus (COVID-19) experiencing exponential growth. Without any vaccination or treatment for the disease, many countries are using a combination of containment and mitigation activities. India has imposed a nationwide lockdown to stop the imminent spread of the novel coronavirus.

The epidemic has also had a significant impact in the IP world and to counter the effects of this pandemic, most of the national IP offices have launched measures to adapt their practices in response to the situation to ensure that members adapt to the emerging conditions with minimal impact on businesses, employees and all stakeholders. To help inventors/companies with business continuity, patent offices have come up with remedies/practices in response to the situation. 

-Author: Abhijith Paipad 

#Corona-19, #coronavirus, #virus, #Novelcoronavirus, #lockdown, #exemptions, #patentoffice, #india, #IPO, #timelines, #extension

On June 24, 2014 , the Indian Patent Office (IPO) refused to grant a patent for Abraxane�, the anti-cancer drug developed by the US firm Abraxis Biosciences (hereinafter referred as Abraxis), for the second time.