Intellectual property protection is not simply a mandate anymore. It has become an important factor driving business strategy, growth and in some cases the downfall of certain businesses. Strategically developing an Intellectual property portfolio has many advantages and becomes a strong asset. Each type of Intellectual property has its own challenges and advantages, which we understand and master. We at Singhwal, aid businesses develop an all rounded Intellectual property strategy and assist in its procurement, maintenance, development and enforcement.
Patents
An ecosystem fostered by patents brings fosters innovation. Though there are different schools of thought involved in this, it is safe to say that Patents have become a driving force in innovation across many industrial domains. Patents function differently across the different domains, for instance, in an ever-changing electronics industry with newer versions of gadgets coming out in the markets, the way patent protection is sought in these cases will have a stark contrast with respect to patents covering drug molecules which are being developed by the pharmaceutical industry. However, it is interesting to note that developing a patent portfolio will have a beneficial effect on both these industries albeit in a different way. Commercialization of patents is the single most important goal while developing an IP portfolio. It is interesting how certain patent analysis tools help in providing direction to lead Research and development and thereby further research in a direction which will help develop a portfolio. Having a strong patent portfolio helps in multiple ways, but most importantly gives you an edge in your respective domains. We at Singhwal, with the strong understanding of the patent ecosystems and the nitty gritty of the different industrial domains, facilitate in providing you with the best strategy in developing your patent portfolio keeping your business and technical, objectives and constraints in mind.
Trademarks
Trademarks and brands form the other most important form of Intellectual property. It takes a lot of time for goodwill to develop and the brand to attain a stature. It is not only time but a lot of money and energy which goes into the development of a brand. From the first step of trying to identify the right mark to develop the brand and the subsequent marks which should not be identical or substantially similar to something which is in existence already, to be able to obtain maximum protection that is available under the law are the foundation for a strong mark. Protection and enforcement go hand in hand while developing a Brand. Obtaining Trademark protection does not suffice. One should also be able to enforce it and only then, will one be able to prevent the mark from becoming diluted or becoming generic like in the case of “XEROX”. It is also by regular enforcement that one may be able to prevent the mark from becoming diluted. We at Singhwal, have with years of experience developing the best strategies that allow business to obtain the maximum protection provided under the law, in the time-bound and cost-effective manner.
Copyrights
Copyright protection is most obviously sought for in the field of the creative and artistic abundance. However, the limitation provided by patents and trademarks in India leaves copyright as the only Intellectual property protection that is available for certain businesses for their unique business methods or very creatives designed website, which provides a key insight into the business. A pertinent factor to note with respect to copyrights is that the enforcement of it hugely depends on how closely the work that has been copied is to that of the original. Therefore, it becomes difficult to enforce. This is overcome by obtaining narrower protection for the works rather than obtaining single blanket protection. This additionally helps develop a portfolio as well. We at Singhwal have assisted clients to obtain copyright protection for various work and have experience in responding to the discrepancy letters, up until the hearing stage in the entire lifecycle of copyrights.
Industrial Designs
Designs are protected under the Designs Act in India. The importance of the Design protection is abundantly clear post the Apple v Samsung smartphone wars wherein the conflict was with respect to Design patents, the term that is used in the United States for the analogous Industrial Designs in India. Industrial designs also require being new novel and something that has an aesthetic sense. When trying to protect a particular product by obtaining design protection, the same is done so by using different views of the product depicted in Illustrations or Photographs. We at Singhwal, have the experience of guiding clients through strategies in International design filing strategies and successfully obtained design protection post prosecution of the same. Developing a Design portfolio has the same benefits as that of any other form of Intellectual property protection.
Singhwal also provides Intellectual Property support services including translations for Patents and Illustrations for patents and designs. The translations of patent documents are of particular importance when it comes to validation of the European patents nationally in the individual countries and in certain cases where the translations are required for rebutting the Examination report or in a Court of law. All of these cases require a certain level of accuracy of the patents and simple machine translations are not sufficient in certain cases. Translation is also to be done by professionals who are aware of the patent law and its implications so that there is no transmission loss while translations.