The Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi today (13 March 2019) approved India’s ascension to the Nice Agreement, the Vienna Agreement and the Locarno Agreement that will harmonise domestic classification systems for intellectual properties (IPs) with those of international standards.

While the Nice Agreement concerns the international classification of goods and services for registration of marks, the Vienna Agreement establishes an international classification of the figurative elements (like symbols, logos etc.,) of marks. The Locarno Agreement establishes an international classification for industrial designs.

“It (the ascension) would give an opportunity to include Indian designs, figurative elements and goods in the international classification systems. The accession is expected to instill confidence in foreign investors in relation to protection of IPs (intellectual properties) in India,” said a government release.

This decision would also help India exercise rights in decision making processes regarding the review and revision of the classifications under the agreement.

New Technologies

Recently, the Government of India issued a tender for a contract to implement the latest technologies like artificial intelligence (AI), blockchain and internet of things (IoT) in the patent processing system. This is expected to speed up the patent grant process and improve transparency in the system.

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Standard IP Rights

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