INTA Meets with the Head of India Intellectual Property Office

A delegation of INTA committee members representing the INTA Trademark Office Practice-India Subcommittee and the INTA Famous and Well-Known Marks-Middle East, Africa & South Asia Subcommittee, met with O.P. Gupta, Controller General of Patents, Designs and Trademarks (CGPDTM) and Head of the Intellectual Property Office of India, on May 3.

The delegation addressed important issues-both procedural and substantive-affecting stakeholders in their dealings with India’s Intellectual Property Office. (To this end, both Subcommittees submitted written statements.)

One such issue concerned consistency in the issuance of official letters. The delegation discussed the timeliness of official communications sent to applicants and agents. The Office gave the issue a thorough hearing. As a direct result of the meeting, the CGPDTM issued a public notification to help improve the consistency of the Office in the issuance of official letters.

The group also provided feedback on the process for correcting errors in registration certificates. The CGPDTM was very receptive to the delegation’s comments, noting that the Office was taking active measures in this regard.

India at the 2019 Annual Meeting

Much in keeping with previous years, INTA welcomed a strong contingent of registrants from India to its 2019 Annual Meeting, which was held in Boston, Massachusetts, USA. A total of 319 registrants from India were among the more than 11,000 registrants, exhibitors, sponsors, and media partners. INTA would like to thank our members and registrants in India who contributed to making this Annual Meeting a memorable one. We hope to see you all in Singapore for INTA’s 2020 Annual Meeting.

Prior to the 2019 Annual Meeting, INTA Corporate member Khaitan & Co. hosted an INTA Pre-Annual Meeting Reception and Intellectual Property (IP) seminar in the firm’s state-of-the-art convention center in Mumbai, India, on April 26, 2019. Speakers included Senior Counsel, Dr. Veerendra Tulzapurkar and Adheesh Nargolkar (Khaitan & Co., India) and INTA Board Member Ranjan Narula (RNA Technology and IP Attorneys, India). The event was attended by 80 participants, and included many corporate representatives.

Dr. Tulzapurkar, a highly respected and veteran IP lawyer, discussed several recent trademark cases that are affecting the trademark law landscape in the country, and provided critical analysis on the cases. Mr. Nargolkar gave a presentation on some peculiarities of IP law specific to India. His talk also touched on patents, trademarks, designs, and copyrights, including the overlap among shape marks, 3D marks, and designs, which, he noted, can lead to complications in choosing the right kind of protection. Mr. Narula’s address began with an introduction of INTA and its initiatives in India, IP and Sport, which was the theme of World IP Day 2019, followed by a discussion of how some brands had tapped into India’s recent elections to remind citizens of the importance of voting rights.

INTA would like to thank Khaitan & Co. for organizing and hosting this successful event.

INTA India Consultant Gauri Kumar supports the Association’s 188 members in India. In collaboration with the staff at INTA’s headquarters in New York City and Representatives Offices around the world, Ms. Kumar works on the Association’s policy, membership, marketing, and communications initiatives throughout India. To learn more about INTA’s activities in India, please contact Gauri Kumar at [email protected].

Although every effort has been made to verify the accuracy of items in the INTA Bulletin, readers are urged to check independently on matters of specific concern or interest.