TERRITORIAL NATURE OF INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS

Intellectual property refers to original creations of literary and artistic works, logos, brand names and even new processes of manufacturing. In every sort of intellectual property, the term ‘property’ indicates ownership by either an individual or an organization. It is common knowledge that a property can get protection under the law. Hence, as the law protects ownership of personal property, it also protects the exclusive control of intangible assets that are in the form of ideas and innovations. Intellectual property laws provide an incentive to those who develop creative works that benefit society and also prevent the unauthorized use of these creations by third parties. Such legal protection encourages and empowers creators to commercialize the creation. Here, it is pertinent to know that intellectual property acts as a valuable asset for a business entity and advances its position in the market. While intellectual property refers to the basic construction of human intelligence such as literary, artistic, technical or scientific constructions, intellectual property rights are the legal rights granted to the inventor to protect their invention. The broad subject of intellectual property comprises of five main types of intellectual property rights, namely, patent, trademark, copyright, geographical indication and industrial design.

Territoriality Principle in India

As a part of the subject matter of intellectual property, the territoriality doctrine states that intellectual property rights do not extend beyond the territory of the sovereign state which had granted the rights in the first place. The doctrine follows the principles of equity, justice and good conscience as it stipulates that nobody should be allowed to take the benefit of someone else's hard work and reputation. According to judicial precedents, the territoriality principle protects the domestic traders against giant multinational business entities that are based in other countries. Here, it is pertinent to note that before the introduction of the New Economic Policy in 1991, the foreign brand owners or corporations were incapable of doing business in India. But, after 1991, an approach which aimed at developing a level playing field for foreign brand owners and corporations was adopted by the Indian Courts. This, however, led the giant corporations to exploit the small domestic traders as they started wiping the small-sized domestic enterprises out of business. Hence, to protect the domestic traders and entrepreneurs against international or foreign corporate entities, India follows the principle of territoriality. The following points further elaborate the territorial nature of intellectual property rights such as patent, trademark, copyright, geographical indication and industrial design:

1. Patent

One of the most important types of IPR, a patent grants property rights to any form of the invention including new products and innovative processes. It gives the inventor the right to prohibit anyone else from using, manufacturing, importing or selling the innovation without permission. The Government grants a patent to make the idea or invention a property of the innovator. In India, a patent is granted for 20 years. It must be noted that one cannot obtain an international patent as patents are territorial rights. In simple words, if one seeks patent protection in a foreign country, the inventor must apply for a patent grant as per the intellectual property laws in that particular country because patent rights are territorial. 

2. Trademark

A trademark represents a company or a business in a unique form. It allows the owner to get any form of visual symbol like a brand name, number, tagline, label or even a combination of all these elements protected to distinguish and identify his or her product from other similar goods. A clear representation of the mark and an identification of the class of products for which the mark is applied are necessary to get a trademark. It must be noted that a trademark must not be descriptive. Also, it must not include common last names or geographical names. A trademark is initially registered for 10 years. One must remember that a trademark is territorial and is limited to the country where protection is granted.

3. Copyright

A copyright protects the work of authorship, artistic work including paintings, sculptures, drawings, photographs, a work of architecture, dramatic work, musical work including music as well as graphical notations, sound recordings and cinematographic films. Registration of copyright in India is a mere record of a fact which makes registration non-mandatory. Hence, registration of a copyright is not required to take action against infringement. The owner of a copyright has exclusive rights over the usage, performance, licensing, modification and display of the work. If a copyright is registered, its duration is the lifetime of the author or artist, and 60 years from the year following his or her death. It must be noted that copyright laws are territorial. In simple words, a copyright applies within the country in which it was passed. However, if one wishes to protect its work internationally, the author or artist can obtain copyright protection by complying with the relevant legal requirements in that particular country.

4. Geographical indication

In simple terms, a geographical indication is an indication that a product originates from a definite geographical territory. A geographical indication is registered if the indication defining the products originates from a particular geographical territory and if the quality reputation or other characteristics of the product are related to its geographical origin. A registered geographical indication is valid for 10 years and can be renewed on payment of renewal fee.

Geographical indication rights are also territorial and are limited to the country or region where the protection is granted.

5. Industrial Design

An industrial design constitutes the ornamental and aesthetic aspect of an article consisting of 3-D or 2-D features such as the shape of an article, patterns, lines or colour. It attracts the consumer to prefer using one product over another. Design as a part of intellectual property not only protects the aesthetic value of the articles but the visual appearance of a product is also protected. A registered design grants exclusive rights and prohibits any unauthorized party from producing or using that same design. Similar to other intellectual property rights, industrial design rights are also territorial and are limited to the country where the protection is granted.

Conclusively, intellectual property rights are territorial and an Indian registration is valid only in India. Also, if one seeks protection of intellectual property in any other country, he or she has to seek protection separately under relevant laws.