India's patent laws comparable to developed nations': Boeing

Country has emerged as one of the largest export markets for the aircraft maker

Even as a section of the US’ corporate sector lobbies against India over protection of intellectual property rights (IPR), American aircraft giant Boeing on Saturday said the country had a strong legal framework to protect such rights. “In Boeing’s experience, India has a legal framework that is adequate to protect IP with no known cases of IP violation involving Boeing’s activities in the defense and aerospace sector,” the American multinational said in its remarks to US Trade Commission.

The commission this week conducted a hearing in connection with its investigation Trade, Investment, and Industrial Policies in India: Effects on the US Economy.     

The statement from Boeing, which has major investment and research and development centres in India and has received orders worth billions of dollars in the aviation and defence sector, assumes significance in view of the fact that a section of influential American corporate sector has been lobbying at the Capitol Hill and the Obama administration against India’s intellectual property regime. “A detailed review of Boeing’s enterprise-wide activities in India, including the export of Boeing products, as well as sourcing activities, indicates an adequate IPR legal framework is in place for Boeing’s aerospace and defence products in India,” the statement said.

“Boeing has had a positive experience with Indian customers, partners and suppliers on IPR protection. Boeing continues to monitor efforts by India’s Ministry of Defence to indigenise defence production in India to reach strategic self-reliance,” the company said in its four-page submission. According to the statement, Boeing is the largest producer, by dollar value, of US exports to India.

“Since late 2005, Boeing has secured contracts from Indian buyers worth tens of billions of US dollars, which is creating and will sustain at least an estimated 180,000 US jobs in a high-skill, high-value industry over the delivery period of these contracts,” the company said.

“India has emerged as one of the largest export markets for Boeing (fifth largest for Boeing Commercial Airplanes and second largest for Boeing Defense, by market potential) and is a key market that Boeing will continue to develop in the future,” it said.

Coming in strong defence of India’s IP regime, Boeing said Indian laws applicable to the range of the company’s business in India are comparable to regulations in other developed countries, as India is a signatory to all major conventions and treaties on this subject.

“Additionally, in our experience, there have not been any major patent violations in India pertaining to Boeing’s defence/aerospace products. Boeing sells its products (defence & aviation) to the India and private airlines where our IPR is contractually protected; we see minimal risk of product IPR violations by the government and private airlines.”