Editorial Staff
Copyrights myths and facts
I realised how there are so many myths that exist in the minds of people around us when I recently got into an argument with one of the people at my gym about music and licensing. So to give a little bit of a background, the lawyer in me urges me to go ask the shop owner/restaurant owner or any…
Domain names and trademarks - What happens when there's a dispute?
Nowadays, the Internet has become the most popular medium for commercial organisations to promote themselves. This is because the internet has no boundaries or closing hours. Every person who wishes to use the internet as a medium needs a domain name. A domain name is nothing but a network address…
Video games and Intellectual Property - Making the smart move!
Before I start off telling the world the numerous ways in which different parts of a video games can be protected as an intellectual property, I must admit that I don’t play video games myself and all my knowledge about it is limited to all that I hear about it from friends and colleagues. Though…
Delhi HC decodes the copyright and design conundrum
Intellectual property laws provide protection for some works under both copyright and design law. At the face of it, the law on this point seems rather clear. However, interpretation of Section 15 of the Copyright Act in conjunction with the definition of “Design” under the Design Act makes it…
Musical instruments and the law - The sound of IP
My science teacher in school (I’m certain most them around the world) always told us how science is connected to everything in our day to day lives. It was quite amusing to understand how it worked practically and I wondered if it was in fact possible to connect something else like we connect…
Sizopin and syzopin - Acquiescence makes no sense?
When I first came across the medicines SIZOPIN and SYZOPIN, I honestly thought it might have just been a typographical error and that they originate from the same source. Much to my astonishment, they are in fact two different drugs used for treating almost the similar thing. So naturally there had…
Board games and intellectual property - The way the law plays out
Growing up, board games were an integral part of my childhood and I particularly liked to play with my granddad because he’d always let me win! It is always fun to play a game of monopoly or scrabble with family or a group of friends, the losing and winning fights apart! Recently at work we were…
Can you register signatures as trademarks in India?
I’m sure most of us have or at least try to have a signature so unique that you wish is associated solely with you whether you are a celebrity or not. Some of us are also very particular about our signatures and we feel that it defines our personality. I’m sure we’ve all come across articles titled…
The Curious Case of Indian Startups and Trademarks
I have a startup story and it’s not a pleasant one. So if you’re expecting to read tales of college grads hunched over laptops in a basement, who created something unique, got funded and are billionaires by the time they are twenty eight, stop reading right away. I’m serious…. This here, is a story…
ZARA trademark dispute - Cocktails and clothes causing confusion?
The David-Goliath tussle in the trademark world is an unending one. It is a scenario where a big company is suing a small company and most often, the big company is made out to be a trademark bully. Though that might be true, in my opinion, it has more to do with protecting one’s trademark rights…