30 December 2018

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An Incentive to Green Technology Patent Applications

First Publication Date: 29th December 2010 In an extremely globalized world where we talk of reducing our carbon footprint, it is obvious that the leaders of tomorrow would be those who can use the alternatives to non renewable sources of energy to the fullest. Green technologies like Solar Energy, Hydel Power and Wind energy are being researched upon the world over and the least the governments can do is provide more and more incentives for development of these technologies. The U.S. Commerce Department’s Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) launched a pilot programme last year on 8th December to accelerate the examination of...

29 December 2018

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IP Policy and Process Set Up: Why wait for a wake up call!

Posted by BananaIP Reporter

in Intellectual Property, IP for Start Ups

The image depicts a warning sign, that reads' Warning. Authorised Personnel Only'. This depicts the idea behind IP protection that gives exclusive rights over the property. This post talks about the benifits of IP protection. Click on the image to read the full post.

First Publication Date: 27th December 2010. Intellectual Property Policy and Process set up is one branch of IP that has long been neglected by a majority of Indian companies especially the SMEs. Most Indian companies come to realize the importance of an IP Policy when they enter into negotiations/business deals/technology transfers with foreign companies or multinationals where the IP hygiene is relatively high. Such a wake-up call comes especially when Indian companies deal with companies from countries where the Intellectual Property laws are very well developed such as Europe, US, Japan, Korea and the like. Companies from these countries do not...

28 December 2018

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Non-obviousness of Biotech Inventions in USA

Posted by BananaIP Reporter

in Intellectual Property

First Publication Date: 26th December 2010. The Non-obviousness standards required for biotechnology inventions have been interpreted by courts to be different from the generally accepted principles. In Hybritech v. Monoclonal , a case involving a patent over "Immunometric Assays Using Monoclonal Antibodies", the court held the patent non-obvious despite the existence of twenty prior art references because the prior art as a whole did not make the invention obvious at the time the invention was made. Though some references seemed to anticipate the invention, the Court pointed out that they were made after the date of conception of the invention, thus...

27 December 2018

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Patentability of Biotech Inventions in USA – Patentable Subject Matter

Posted by BananaIP Reporter

in Intellectual Property, Patents

The image depicts a person in a laboratory.

First Publication Date: 27th December 2010 To be patentable subject matter in USA, an invention should be a process, machine, manufacture or composition of matter or any improvement thereof. There are three judicially created exclusions to patentable subject matter in USA. They are Laws of nature, physical phenomena, and abstract ideas. Biotechnology (Biotech) inventions are considered to be eligible subjects as Compositions of matter or manufactures. The exclusion most relevant for biotech inventions is 'Laws of nature' exclusion. US Courts have consistently held that as per the exclusion anything that naturally exists or is a 'product of nature' is not patentable. The...

26 December 2018

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Once an Intermediate, Always an Intermediate

Posted by BananaIP Reporter

in Intellectual Property, Patents

First Publication Date: 22nd December 2010 The other day, while I was having a heated discussion with 2 fellow bloggers about the patentability of repurposed drugs i.e. patenting of new use of a known drug, we hit a road block with regard to patent value of an intermediate. The question raised was "Will a newly found first use of an already known intermediate be patentable in India?" I am rephrasing the question for the purpose of this discussion. “Will the exclusion criterion elaborated in Section 3 (d) of the Indian Patents Act exclude the patentability of the first known use of the intermediate?” Whenever...

25 December 2018

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Biotechnology and Patent Challenge

Posted by BananaIP Reporter

in Intellectual Property, Patents

This image depicts a DNA strand. The DNA forms the basis of all life forma and conquering it is the challenge for biotechnology. This post is about the patentability of biotech inventions. Click on the image to read the full post.

First Publication Date: 19th December 2010. Since inception patent law is being customized and fine tuned by governments to meet the needs of evolving technologies. Strong basic principles have evolved to cater to the needs of traditional fields of science and technology and they have been working well in promoting progress. However, the basic principles have utterly failed in a number of ways, when it comes to their application to Modern Biotechnology. The unique nature of Modern Biotechnology is the main reason for the failure.Why is Biotechnology Unique? Biotechnology promises more efficacious drugs, medical treatment tailored to the individual patient's biological make-up,...

24 December 2018

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Decorated Christmas Trees

Posted by BananaIP Reporter

in Intellectual Property, Patents

First Publication Date: 21st December 2010. It is a busy world and a busy life. People are in a hurry to earn their living and achieve some thing in life. During the rush to fulfill their dreams, they hardly find time to catch up with their loved ones and even forget to enjoy life. That is the point where festivals play a significant role. Nowadays festivals are the only occasions during which people reunite with their dear ones and find some time to enjoy regardless of their hectic schedules. One of such a festival - Christmas has come. Christmas is a joyous...

24 December 2018

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Validity of Non-Compete Covenants in India

Posted by BananaIP Reporter

in Intellectual Property, Trade Secrets

This image depicts a gate locked with a chain. This image is relevant because this post talks about the validity of Employee's Non-Compete Covenants in India

First Publication Date: 15th December 2010 Agreements that restrain an employee from working with a competitor or carrying out a competing business are called Non-compete agreements. Such agreements, when reasonable are considered to be valid in countries such as USA and UK. However, under the Indian law Non-compete agreements are valid to a very limited extent because agreements in restraint of trade or employment are void under Section 27 of the Indian Contract Act. The section reads as follows:"27. Agreement in restraint of trade void .– Every agreement by which any one is restrained from exercising a lawful profession, trade or...

23 December 2018

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Shielding Patent Attacks – A Peek at Patent Defenses in India

Posted by BananaIP Reporter

in Intellectual Property, Patents

First Publication Date: 11th December 2010. A person falling within the scope of a defense will not be liable for infringement though his product or process is infringing. Some of the defenses to patent infringement recognized under the Indiann Patent Law are:A. Experiment, Research or Education; B. Bolar Exemption; C. Government use; and D. Parallel Imports. A. Experiment, Research or Education Use of a patented invention for experimentation or research is a defense to patent infringement. The provision relating to experiment and research under the Indian law uses expansive language and can be interpreted to have a very broad scope. Economic objectives of the research or...

22 December 2018

3 Cmnts

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Integrating Secrecy and Exclusivity to Gain Competitive Advantage

Posted by BananaIP Reporter

in Intellectual Property, Trade Secrets

First Publication Date: 10th December 2010. Patents protect inventions by granting exclusive rights for a period of twenty years and trade secrets protect any information having business value as long as the information can be maintained secret. Unlike patents, trade secrets need not be registered and will remain valid based on measures taken by the trade secret holder. The subject matter of trade secrets is very broad and a very small portion of that subject matter relating to inventions overlaps with that of patents. What protection should a company opt for with respect to the overlapping subject matter? As propounded by the...

Author: BananaIP Reporter

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