Significance and Type of IPR and How IPR impact E-commerce and Indian Market..

Structure & Type of IPR:

What is Intellectual Property Rights (IPR)?

Intellectual property rights (IPR) is a legal term where all rights which are associated with intangible assets that are possessed by a person or a company and are encrypted from use without consent. The term ‘intangible assets’ focuses on non-physical properties, which include the ownership rights of intellectual property. The following are some instances of intellectual property rights :

• Domain Names
• Patents
• Inventions
• Moral Rights
• Industrial Design
• Confidential Information
• Logos
• Design Rights
• Trademarks

Significance of IPR :

Works of literature, arts, inventions, design, names, symbols, and pictures used in market are all governed by intellectual property rights, or IPR. The main objective of IPR is :

1. Encourage Innovation and Creativity : IPR inspires inventors to devote time and resources to creative thinking by granting them complete ownership over their creations.

• Brand Value & Identity : Businesses can establish a unique brand identity with the implementation of copyrights and trademarks.

• Protection from Imitation : It is used to protect companies and individuals from having their concepts, design, logos used without permission.

• Boosts Economic Growth :  A strong IPR protection enhances the domestic economy and draws in international investments by facilitating R&D and start- ups.

• Monetization : Income streams can be created by licensing or selling the rights by IPR owners.

Types of IPR :

The major four types of IPR includes property rights, including patents, trademarks, copyrights and trade secrets. To safeguard the tangible assets, intellectual property owners frequently use many forms of intellectual property rules and regulations.

1. Patents : Patents law grants one or more inventors exclusive rights to their inventions and prevents others from using them. It is widely used by technology businesses in order to protect their investments in innovating and developing various products. The main three categories of patents include:
2. Design patents : Use to protect a design of a product shape eg : Coca-Cola bottle, various fonts and other visual traits.

• Utility patents : Useful to protect a product with functional purpose. Medications and car safety design are few of the examples of intellectual property. Utility patents continues to be the most expansive area of patent law.

• Trademarks : Logos, sounds, words, colours or symbols that an entity makes in order to set it apart from the rest of the competitors of goods or services are protected by the Trademark law. Some of the major examples are the Twitter logo and the Dunkin’s font.

• Copyrights : This law helps to protect the rights of the original creator of original work. A copyright is automatically licensed to the creator of an original work of authorship(OWA).

• Trade Secrets : A company’s trade secrets are its intellectual property that has not been made available to public, and it has economic significance and contains crucial information. Trade Secret laws have ceased to protect information it becomes accessible to everyone. A well-known example is the recipe for Coca-Cola.

Impact of IPR on E-Commerce :

One of the e-commerce’s most valuable components is intellectual property rights. Sometimes the significance of IPR on e-commerce is overlooked  despite its immense importance because the link to e-commerce is not particularly clear. Regardless, there is a complete interdependence between IP and e-commerce.

Typically, e-commerce incorporates the sales of products and services through the licensing of Intellectual Property. Music, images, design, pictures, software, content and plenty of other forms of IP can all be exchanged online via e-commerce platform. Methods like technological security measures and intellectual property regulations provides protection. The following are some of the major impacts of IPR on E-Commerce :

1. Protecting Against Counterfeit Products: The sale of counterfeit or pirated goods is one of the primary obstacles for e-commerce. Products that are counterfeit not only damage a brand’s reputation but also mislead consumers. IPR helps in brand names and logos and can only be used by authorized sellers to trademarks.

• Building Brand Trust and Identity : Customers link reputation and quality to a certain trademarked name or design. Businesses have a distinct and safe identity because to trademarks and design rights protect everything from logos to packaging.

• Enabling Global Trade :  By safeguarding their inventions in overseas markets, IPR protection aids Indian brands in their global expansion. Indian businesses can get intellectual property rights in several nations, securing cross-border trademark protection, under international agreements like WIPRO and TRIPS.

• Licensing Digital Products : Scalable business models as licensing and subscriptions are supported by e-commerce, especially for software, art, templates and content. The legal right to grant a license for a product or service belongs only to the IP owner.

• Ensuring Platform Compliance and Legal Clarity : E-commerce businesses have to abide by national and international intellectual property rules. Inaction on IPR infringement may result in legal action. Its gives platform the legal foundation they need for handling disputes and shutdown requests.

Impact of IPR on Indian Market :

Intellectual property rights (IPR) have made a substantial economic contribution to India by promoting research and development. India’s ongoing commitment to IP protection demonstrates the importance of intellectual property rights to the nation.

The main laws that govern intellectual property protection in India are the Indian Patents Act of 1970, the Trademarks Act of 1999, the Industrial Designs Act of 2000, the Geographical Indications of Goods Act of 1999, and the guidelines for the protection of computer-related inventions.

India’s diverse market is more dynamic than ever, and IPR plays a crucial role in enabling the shift :

1. Fueling Innovation and Start-ups : The world’s third largest startup ecosystem is found in India. Businesses, ranging from biotech to fintech are developing quickly. IPR helps start ups to build unique brand and digital products. IP-backed businesses attract more funding as investors see legal protection as a sign of credibility and scalablity.

• Attracting Foreign Investment and Global Partnership : Countries with robust and enforced intellectual property rules are more likely to attract foreign investment. With the help of IP friendly policy, India has attracted global R&D centers from companies like Google, Microsoft, Samsung and Amazon.

• Preserving Traditional Knowledge and Cultural Heritage : Due to rich  traditional and Cultural Heritage, IPR helps in Geographical Indications(GI) protect region-specific products from imitation. This also increases global visibility and a fair income for artisans and farmers.

In conclusion, Intellectual Property Rights(IPR), plays an important role in fostering innovation, creativity and economic growth in digital age. IPRs of all kinds, including copyrights, trademarks, patents, and trade secrets, are vital instruments for safeguarding the distinctive inventions and works of people and companies. IPR protects brand identity, technological innovations, and digital content in the context of e-commerce, which boosts customer confidence and promotes fair competition.

In the Indian market, the rapid growth of digital start-ups and online platforms demonstrates the increasing importance of intellectual property rights in e-commerce. Proper IPR enforcement protects homegrown inventions, draws in foreign capital, and increases India’s competitiveness in international trade.

Finally, a strong IPR regime is essential for long-term prosperity in India’s developing digital economy since it not only protects the rights of companies and artists but also fortifies the entire innovation and commerce ecosystem.

Article Written By–
Jyotika Kamble
Research Intern at Ible Boom..