This week, India's Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP) released further details of the country's first national IPR policy. Carrying the slogan 'Creative India, Innovative India', the policy and its associated public campaign aim to support business innovation while also promoting awareness about the 'economic, social and cultural benefits' of intellectual property rights for India. DIPP joint secretary Rajiv Aggarwal has indicated that the new policy will be submitted for cabinet approval in the Indian Parliament in the near future.

Industry pressure

Global pharmaceutical companies have long been pushing for an overhaul of India's IPR system, arguing that overburdened patent courts and complicated application processes have allowed generic-brand drugmakers to capitalise on the gap left by backlogged patent applications. According to Indian Trade Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, there were an overwhelming 246,495 patents pending with the government as of 1 November this year. However, Indian regulators and policy makers must continue to balance the needs of big pharma against those of both local pharmaceutical companies that have made multi-million dollar businesses selling generics and the country's 1.2 billion citizens, who, for the most part, are unable to pay the full price for patented drugs. While the new policy may signal an effort to support and facilitate foreign business activity in India, Mr Aggarwal assures that striking the right balance remains crucial and that India's broader development objectives will not fall by the wayside.

Securitisation

Among the policy features most likely to please business innovators is the proposed securitisation of innovation rights, whereby intellectual property assets (in the form of patents, trademarks and copyrights) can be valued and converted into commercially viable assets, then issuable to investors. The policy also suggests creating an IP trading platform for both investors and IP portfolio owners. The value of an IP asset would be calculated by analysing the cost incurred in acquiring it, as well the amount it is expected to fetch over the next five years.

However, senior IPR lawyer Ajay Sahni has warned that the valuation of IP assets will prove challenging in India without efficient, standardised and compulsory registration processes, even if the new policy is approved. 'Unless there is a system that makes registration mandatory, securitisation will be very difficult in the Indian scenario', Mr Sahni commented. 'Any prior user who has not registered his trademark can challenge the claim of a registered IP user as per current laws. As a banker, I would never be sure of what an IP is worth.' Sources: Economic Times; The Wall Street Journal