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Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property
Rights
Meaning and Definition
Intellectual Property Rights or IPRs are the
rights given to persons over the creations of their minds.
They usually give the creator an exclusive right over the
use of his creation for a certain period of time.
WTO Classification of IPRs
As per the Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual
Property Rights or TRIPS Agreement of the WTO, IPRs are
divided into 2 main areas: -
The rights of authors of literary and artistic
works such as books and other writings, musical compositions,
paintings, sculpture, computer programs and films are protected
by copyright for a minimum period of 50 years after the
death of the author. Also protected through copyright and
related (or neighbouring) rights are the rights of performers
(actors, singers, musicians), producers of phonograms (sound
recordings) and broadcasting organisations. The main purpose
of protection of copyright and related rights is to encourage
and reward creative work.
Industrial property may be divided into 2
main areas –
-
The first involves protection of distinctive
signs, in particular, trademarks (which distinguish
the goods and services of one undertaking from those
of others) and geographic indications (which identify
a good as originating in a place where a given characteristic
of the good is essentially attributable to its geographical
origin). Protection of such distinctive signs intends
to stimulate and ensure fair competition and enables
consumers to make informed choices between various goods
and services. The protection may last indefinitely,
provided the sign in question continues to be distinctive.
-
Other types of industrial property
are protected primarily to stimulate innovation, design
and the creation of technology. In this category fall
inventions (protected by patents), industrial designs
and trade secrets. The purpose is to provide protection
for the results of investment in the development of
new technology, thereby providing incentive and means
to finance research and development activities. The
protection is usually given for a finite term (typically
20 years in the case of patents).
IPRs may specifically be classified into 7
categories: -
-
Copyrights and other related rights
-
Trademarks
-
Geographical appellations
-
Industrial designs
-
Layout designs for Integrated Circuits
-
Undisclosed information (trade secrets)
-
Patents
The WTO rules prescribe minimum protection
standards for all these categories.
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