In news: The United States has placed India and eight other countries on the Priority Watch List for IP protection and enforcement.
More about the report-
- Out of 100 trading partners being reviewed for this year’s “Special 301 Report” by USTR, eight have been placed on Priority Watch List and 23 on the Watch List.
- Seven other countries on the Priority Watch list are Argentina, Chile, China, Indonesia, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Ukraine and Venezuela.
- The 23 trading partners on the Watch List are Algeria, Barbados, Bolivia, Brazil, Canada, Colombia, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Egypt, Guatemala, Kuwait, Lebanon, Mexico, Pakistan, Paraguay, Peru, Romania, Thailand, Trinidad & Tobago, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, and Vietnam.
- According to the report, India has remained inconsistent in its progress on intellectual property (IP) protection and enforcement.
- Though India’s enforcement of IP in the online sphere has gradually improved, a lack of concrete benefits for innovators and creators persists, which continues to undermine their efforts.
- The potential threat of patent revocations, lack of presumption of patent validity and the narrow patentability criteria under the India Patents Act burdens companies across different sectors.
Source: Livemint
