'Indian industry not taking advantage of IPR'

Due to lack of awareness on Intellectual Property Rights (IPR), the Indian industry is lagging behind in exploiting benefits of registering and protecting trademarks internationally, an official said here Monday.

Chaitanya Prasad, Controller General of Patents, Designs and Trade Marks, DIPP, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, said though India has been on board the Madrid System for the International Registration of Marks (Madrid System) since July 2013, it has failed to capitalise on it.

"After joining the protocol we have had over 11,618 designations of India for foreign countries. As against that, we have received 8,397 applications to India after international registration. As against that, from India we have only 185 applications," Prasad said.

"People from outside are taking advantage to come to India but the industry in India is not taking that advantage," he said.

Prasad was speaking at a Confederation of Indian Industries-organised public awareness building seminar here on the Madrid System.

The system offers owners of trademark (TM) a cost effective, user friendly and streamlined means of protecting and managing their trademark portfolio internationally.

It is governed by two treaties, the Madrid Agreement and the Madrid Protocol, and is administered by the International Bureau of World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) in Geneva, Switzerland.

Prasad said the System allows innovators and businesses to choose among 90 countries for filing trademarks with one single online application.

"Despite the ease of use and less expenditure, we have only 185 applications (in one year). Out of that, 97 have already had international registrations and they will proceed to national registrations in various countries where they are designated," said Prasad, stressing on the lack of awareness.

Prasad said the gap can also be seen in applications of patents where out of 43,000 applications into India from 2013 to 2014, only 22 percent are from within the country.

"The rest, 78 percent are from foreigners. Indians need to take advantage of IPR," Prasad said.