Journal of Intellectual Property Rights
Vol 6
2
March 2001
CONTENTS
Articles
IPR Issues in Biotechnology in the Context of Developing Countries and India
1
Prasanta K Ghosh and Terala V Ramanaiah
Copyright on the Internet
18
Benoit Muller
Neem-based Natural Product Innovations: Analysis of Patents
27
M M S Karki
Literature Review
38
IPR- General
38
 Privacy as intellectual property?  Information privacy/information property
Emotional intelligence and legal education  Intellectual property and privacy
IPR under WTO  IPR endogenous growth Digital signatures  Failed attempt
at creating a big contender IP and licensing issues Agreement on basic
telecommunication  Information technology law Biomedical publishing and
Internet  IP aspects of trade and genetic resources
Patents
42
Patent infringement case  International exhaustion of patent rights Patent
flooding
Copyrights
44
Misuse of licensing evidence  Copyright statutes that regulate technology
Copyright vs freedom of scientific communication Why copyrights are not
community property?  Scope of copyright and patent power  CONFU
guidelines Scholarly publishing Copyrights and e-commerce Copyright
protection of biotechnology works On-line copyright infringement liability
Copyright laws to prevent piracy in mass media Safe harbor in the fair use
doctrine Encryption laws debate  Design for the copyright of fashion 
Intelligent agents and copyright Digital embodiments and copyright  Fair use in
US scholarly publishing Fair use guidelines for academic community
Trademarks
49
Why domain names are not generic Search engine manipulation
Traditional Knowledge
50
Sustainable development and traditional IPR in traditional knowledge
Software Protection
51
IPR in computer software  Patenting software in Taiwan
IPR News and Notes
IPR News-General
53
53
WIPO activities WIPO delegation visit  Bill to protect farmers’ rights 
Increase in patent filing  IPR agenda  Collective laws for Electronic access  Ecommerce and IP  IP and biotechnology  Innovation policy trends 
Government technology leadership award for TEAS  IPR wing in IIT-Delhi 
USPTO web database  Jethro Tull wins UDRP case  UK granted licence for
using Oxo brand  Traditional knowledge digital library  Domain name grabbing
 Invitation for UK’s most inventive female  Award for young schoolgirls
Patent News
62
Patent application process streamlined Patentability of methods of doing
business European patent system and community patent Electronic patent filing
 Nobel prize winners hold patents  Harvard mouse patenting upheld  Patent
regime in Germany Dotcoms may go in for patenting  International patent
applications  Nichia Chemical wins lawsuit OGT revokes affymetrix’s patents
Copyright News
68
CCC to launch Web right service  Digital rights management service for New
York Times company
Key Patents
69
Laptop safety process Wristwatch sundial Eye lens  WAP handset 
Firefighter’s garment  Patent on cleaner rig  Radio-controlled stun gun 
Natural aroma extraction process  Fermented garlic compositions  Fruit flavour
producing process  Ripcord parachute  Super absorbent polymeric foams
Cadila Pharmaceuticals technology ed AIDS vaccine  Anti-anxiety drug
Technical Notes
Plants patenting  IP technology transfer and genetic resources  IPR in the Third
World perspective Patenting DNA  Executive summary of draft report on
72
traditional knowledge Patents and computer programs
83
Conference Reports
CSIR IP Coordinators’ Meet 2000
Journal of Intellectual Property Rights
Vol 6 January 2001pp 1-17
IPR Issues in Biotechnology in the Context of Developing
Countries and India
Prasanta K Ghosh1 and Terala V Ramanaiah
Department of Biotechnology, Ministry of Science & Technology
CGO Complex, Lodi Road, New Delhi 110 003
(Received 27 July 2000)
Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) on inventions in biotechnology may become a
controversial topic of discussion in the coming years, as such inventions cut across issues
related to science and technology policies, ethics and economics. These issues are directly
related with the complexities of international trade. India would have to be in conformity
with the provisions of World Trade Organization (WTO) on IPR in biotechnology inventions.
This would require amending the present Indian Patents Act as also enacting provisions for
the protection of plant varieties, besides ensuring the protection of biological goods linked
with geographical indications. The position of many developing countries would be similar to
India. The future years would witness how the developing countries would deal with the
definitions of patentable microorganisms, protection of other living substances, distinctions
between discoveries and invention, ethical issues in biological inventions, and in the
provisions for making deposits for patentable biological materials. Genetic resources are the
properties of the sovereign States to which they are indigenous. Future accessions of such
resources would require consent from the States. The Convention on Biological Diversity
(CBD) promulgates ensuring conservation and sustainable use of biological diversity, and fair
and equitable sharing of benefits from their utilization. Supply and exchange of biological
materials are expected to move across the national boundaries through the material transfer
agreements on the basis of authorized, mutually agreed terms among States, and subject to
authorized prior consent. Consequently, access legislation and access authority for genetic
materials of States would be in the making for all the CBD member countries.
Journal of Intellectual Property Rights
Vol 6 January 2001pp 18-26
Copyright on the Internet
Benoît Müller
International Publishers’ Association
3, av.de Miremont, 1206 Geneva (Switzerland)
(Received 7 November 2000)
This discussion paper on legal aspects of the dissemination of works in the digital
environment outlines some basic principles of copyright. It discusses problems arising from
different uses of literary work on the Internet, providing an excellent orientation in this
complex field. An attempt is made to set different types of uses of works in the digital
environment in their respective context and to explore possible ways of legal analysis.
Journal of Intellectual Property Rights
Vol 6 January 2001pp 27-37
Neem-based Natural Product Innovations: Analysis of Patents
M M S Karki
National Institute of Science Communication
Dr K S Krishnan Road, New Delhi 110012
(Received 4 December 20 00)
In the recent past, a number of patents have been filed on properties, chemical composition,
and active principles of neem tree. In this paper, patent analysis of neem-related patents has
been undertaken. It aims at identifying the current status of research efforts and potential
commercial uses of various neem products. Between 1985 and 2000, more than 60 patents
have been granted all over the world on the neem-based innovations, and most of them are on
the pesticidal property. Patents dealing with new extracts, compounds, products or uses are
more than patents on new manufacturing processes. Analysis indicates constant efforts
towards improvement in the purity of the extract of the active ingredients. Another challenge
appears to be how to increase the storage stability of azadirachtin, which is essential for
enhancing its shelf-life and marketability The industrial firms of USA have sizable number of
US neem-related patents. In India, CSIR has played an active role in obtaining neeem patents.
Journal of Intellectual Property Rights
Vol 6
2
March 2001
CONTENTS
Articles
Intellectual Property Management for Enhancing
Competitiveness
Particularly in Small and Medium Enterprises
.85
Shahid Alikhan
The Scope of Reverse Engineering of Computer Software
under the
Copyright (Amendment) Act, 1999: A Critique
94
K M Gopakumar
IPR and Seed Indusrty
109
Syamal Krishna Ghosh, KVirupakshappa,M Shyamsunder
Singh and A R Sadananda
Report of the Task Force on Traditional Knowledge
Digital
Library: A Gist
.121
V K Gupta
Inventing and Patenting on Lasers – An Overview
134
K C Garg
Views on Intellectual Property Rights
138
An Interview with Dr R A Mashelkar
Literature Review
Considerations in ethical decision-making and software
142
piracy  Taking TRIPS to the eleventh amendment: The
aftermath of the college savings cases  Socio-conomic
benefits of intellectual property protection in developing
countries Assisted technology transfer to SMEs: lessons
from an exemplary case
 Compulsory licensing for translation: an instrument of
development The Doctrine of equivalents: a call for
congressional reinvigoration  Legal protection of
databases
 Moving the gene patent debate forward A framework
for achieving compromise between industry and civil
society
 A lockean theory of intellectual property  Intellectual
property rights and concentration in agricultural
biotechnology
 Intellectual property and the national information
infrastructure: the report of the working group on
intellectual property rights, executive summary Protecting
proprietary and security rights in cyberspace: initiatives in
India
IPR News and Notes
IPR News—General
WTO dispute settlement New patents regime  New
category of patents  Internet domains should have some
rules like .com  Revamp of patent offices starts  India
concedes ground on definition of basmati  Traditional
knowledge digital library on anvil
148
Patent News
Patent on key PCR enzyme ruled invalid  Enola bean
patent challenged  India leads in leather patent hunt 
Hewlett-Packard settles UK patent suit with Teco
Patenting of P2P technology  India must not give in to
MNC pressure on drug patents Rice genome may not be
fully patented  SAIL tops list of patent applications 
Genes can be patented: US  No MNC threat to basmati
farmers Who is patenting what?  No link between patent
regime and FDI  Basmati exports to EU may be hit
153
Copyright & Trademark News
Changes in Copyright and Trademarks Act  HC orders in
favour of Fairever
Two similar trademarks allowed to coexist
162
Biodiversity
163
Biodiversity action plan  Biodiversity legislation reflects
India's obligations
Key Patents
67
Warping pens  Healthy glow (process for mixing drug
with dye)  Nerve gas alert  Nervous link (efficient way
to bond transistors to voltage sensitive cells)  Fresheners
and insecticidesBiodegradable credit cards  Right track
(system for checking railway track)  New fishing net 
Patenting of schemes  No more cheating (novel sport
garment)  Electric fence  Modem and phone socket 
Magic mix patented
Technical Notes
169
Traditional knowledge under commercial blanket 
Indigenous people criticise WIPO approach Gene patent
debate  Copyright and electronic commerce
176
Conference Reports
International Seminar on Protection of India’s Intellectual
Wealth in the New Millennium
R D Rikhari
Journal of Intellectual Property Rights
Vol 6 March 2001pp 85-93
Intellectual Property Management for Enhancing Competitiveness Particularly in Small and Medium Enterprises
Shahid Alikhan
No. 135, Mehdi Nawaz Jung Marg
Banjara Hills, Main Road, Hyderabad 500 034, A.P.
Paper emphasizes the needs for enhancing competitiveness, particularly, in the small and
medium enterprises (SMEs) through effective use of the intellectual property (IP)
management system. Management of the IP system by SMEs should aim not only at the
generation of their own technology but also at providing information to prospective
inventors. Introducing the latest and the newest technologies in the productive sector of
SMEs plays a critical role in economic growth and promotes competitiveness through the use
of the IP system in responding to consumers demands for higher and better quality of
production. Finally, the author recommends some salient points for strengthening and
promoting the IP system by governments and the private sector particularly SMEs and their
national associations.
Journal of Intellectual Property Rights
Vol 6 March 2001pp 94-108
The Scope of Reverse Engineering of Computer Software under the
Copyright (Amendment) Act, 1999: A Critique

K M Gopakumar
The Raoul Walsenburg Institute of Human Rights and Humanitarian Law
 Lund University, Sweden.
(Received 7 September 2000)
This article attempts to examine the scope of reverse engineering of computer software under
the recent amendment to the copyright act. The analysis is made in the background of a
similar development in usa, europe and india’s obligation under trips agreement. It contests
the perception that the act permits ample scope for reverse engineering and shows that the
changes brought by the amendment give only a minimum space for reverse engineering.
Though the amendment limits the scope of reverse engineering, but it accommodates the
market-oriented jurisprudence of copyright protection. The scope of reverse engineering
under the copyright act even after amendment is the weakest in india. Limiting the scope of
decompilation only for achieving interoperability exceeds india’s international obligation to
protect the computer software. Therefore, limiting the scope of decompilation only for
achieving interoperability is unwarranted.
Journal of Intellectual Property Rights
Vol 6 March 2001pp 109-120
IPR and Seed Industry
Syamal Krishna Ghosh, K Virupakshappa, M Shyamsunder Singh and ARSadananda
Nagarjuna Agricultural Research and Development Institute
61, Nagarjuna Hills, Panjagutta, Hyderabad 500 082
(Received 28 November 2000)
Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) and Plant Breeders’ Right (PBR) are the most discussed
and debated issues in the context of present day agriculture and seed industry. PBR is the
right of the breeder to enjoy the benefits for a restricted period out of his novel and distinct
cultivar. The WTO also provides that plant varieties must be protected by patents or by sui
generis system such as PBR provided under the UPOV, in which variety must have the
novelty, distinction, uniformity and stability. The total cultivated areas under most crops
are declining or stagnating and the yield performance of the seeds now used are below the
potential. This led to the introduction of hybrid varieties by the government, private sector
seed industries and farmers. With the increasing role of private seed companies, the private
sector's share is now more than 60% and the rest is contributed by the public sector. But
with the intensification of IPR and PBR issues, the seed industry is moving through merger
and acquisition phase to sustain future growth and to adopt new technologies by investing
more in the R &D. TRIPS Agreement puts forth a test on PBR as it stipulates: “members
shall provide for the protection of plant varieties either by patents or an effective sui
generis system or by any combination thereof”. UPOV conventions of 1978 dealt with
rights of farmers, researchers and breeders, and 1991 convention directed towards breeders
and placed restriction on the right to use of farm-saved seeds by farmers. The Indian Plant
Variety Act (PVA) has considered both the Acts, in some of the aspects with some
additional features. The PBR legislation must be simple and its implementation costeffective and less-time consuming, as the seed companies in developing countries are
typically small. The revised IPR situation may give boost to the scientific community, seed
companies and put India in a respectable position in the global business arena as well as
encourage inventions to make the Indian scientists competitive.
Journal of Intellectual Property Rights
Vol 6 March 2001pp 121-133
Report of the Task Force on Traditional Knowledge
Digital Library: A Gist
V K Gupta
National Institute of Science Communication
Dr K S Krishnan Marg, New Delhi 110012
(Received 4 December 2000)
The Department of Indian Systems of Medicines and Homeopathy (Dept of ISM&H),
Government of India, constituted an inter-disciplinary task force for preparing a report on
establishing a Traditional Knowledge Digital Library (TKDL) in 1999. The objective of the
TKDl is to make accessible India’s traditional knowledge to the patent examiners globally
and to prevent the grant of patents on non-original inventions based on its traditional system.
This is the gist of the TKDL task force report. Besides describing the details of the tasks
accomplished by the task force, it gives TKDL vision view, its findings, recommendations,
conclusions, etc.
Journal of Intellectual Property Rights
Vol 6 March 2001pp 134-137
Inventing and Patenting on Lasers – An Overview
K C Garg
National Institute of Science, Technology and Development
Studies,Dr K S Krishnan Marg, New Delhi 110013
(Received 2 March 2001)
This paper reviews the worldwide inventing activities on lasers and numerous applications of
this technology. It covers the study of technological development, patent trends, likely
technological trends, and indicators of r & d. Based on the patent analysis, efforts are made to
review the technology trends in this field, patenting activity in different nations is compared,
identified the institutions that are the loci of innovative activity in laser science and
technology, market players are found out, comparison among the industrial firms is done,
identified the sub- fields in which the patents are being filed, and areas of emphasis are
determined.
Journal of Intellectual Property Rights
Vol 6
3
May 2001
CONTENTS
Articles
Servitudes of Intangible Properties
181
Rajesh Vellakkat
TRIPS Patent System: Implications for Health Care and Pharma Industry
189
B K Keayla
Plant Intellectual Property Transfer Mechanisms at Universities
200
Steven C Price and Bryan Z Renk
Intellectual Property: Policy and Strategy for 21st Century
211
Murasoli Maran
Tamarind-based Innovations: Analysis of Patents
215
Bharvi Dutt
Literature Review
IPR-General
227
Comparing the IPC and the US classification system for the patent
searcher Current state-of-the-art Markush topological search systems
Supporting business and innovation
 Innovators and IP advisers Innovation market – the economic
exploitation of property rights in high-quality inventions IPR and
agricultural technology  TRIPS and product versus process innovations 
New pills for poor people US legal solutions to questions concerning ecommerce  IT law in the European Union  Cyberliability
Patents
230
Patent information today and in the future Monitoring technology trends
through patent analysis Relative effectiveness of patents and secrecy for
appropriation  Innovation in Israel Innovation needs patents reform 
Patent applications and subsequent changes of performanceRole of IP and
patent information Web sites for patent information centres: the US
experience  German Patent Bulletin in assistant mode on the WWW 
Documentary sources of information on Indian patents  IP strategy in
Japanese and UK companies: Growth of patenting and licensing by US
universities:  Software and business methods are patentable  Patent scope
and innovation in the software industry
Copyright
234
Advanced copyright issues on the Internet ¯¯ part ii Advanced copyright
issues on the Internet Copyright protection of computer software in the UK
Fear of infringement
Domain Names and Trademarks
236
Domain names ¯¯ disputes and resolution ¯¯ part I Administration and
assignment of domain names in Hong Kong  TEAS: electronic filing of
trademark applications at USPTO
IPR News And Notes
IPR News—General
237
World intellectual property day  World intellectual property declaration 
IP. Com  US introduces ERMS  Biotechnology consultative forum
launched  Oxford Intellectual Property Research Centre  IP and SMEs 
Turkey member state of EPO Uniform cyber law  Global verification
mechanism  Need for more spending on pharma R&D  Biodiversity and
IPR
Patent News
243
Computer industry to fight storage patent victory  Germany allows gene
patenting  Genes should not be patentable  USPTO finalizes guidelines on
gene patenting  Visix settles patent infringement lawsuit Patent
information from Japan  Invalidating patents  Biotech patents  First
patent trading centre to open in China  Patent agents can also act as
litigator
 Patent for a novel non-toxic cancer therapy  Dolly technology patented 
USPTO confirms patentability of Henkel patent  Celera files preliminary
patents on DNA  Japan to conditionally patent DNA fragments Intergraph
wins software patent case against Intel
 Infectech obtains two patents in bacterial genomics
Copyright News
250
Copyright protection in the information society  Commission and
Parliament compromise on information society copyrighting  Copyright on
Net
Geographical Indications
251
Basmati tag only for varieties of three states  Basmati is only from India,
Pak: UK
Key Patents
New photoconductor for laser printers  Supersecret chip Method to catch
ATM aliens Cellphone for video conference  Anti-smoking pill  Patent
for 5-HT3 antagonist  Herbal formulation for male pattern baldness 
Treatment of ovarian cancer  Turmeric for treating health ailments
Antibacterial agent  A process for making preservative  Single blood test
for detection of digestive and immune disorder  Nutritional beverage
process Method for identification of genes  Polypeptide components
Process for identifying a buffer Process for detecting Alzheimer's disease
Technical Notes
253
256 Digital dilemma: IP in the information age  Future of the
pharmaceutical industry in the new IPR regime  IPR and space activities
Journal of Intellectual Property Rights
Vol 6 May 2001pp 181-188
Servitudes of Intangible Properties
Rajesh Vellakkat
Lex Orbis, Intellectual Property Attorneys
B-1/39, Malviya Nagar, New Delhi 110017
(Received 31 January 2001)
The outer limit of intangible property rights has been a well-debated question since time
immemorial. How encompassing is it against the rights of similar property holders? What is
the real border of each right holder, which controls and shares the intangible net of rights?
There have been attempts to answer these questions since the days of common law practices
to the developed written legal systems. All the statutes relating to intellectual property rights
(ipr) tried to define the rights conferred. However, a definition cannot demarcate the
boundaries of the rights clearly, therefore it is always prone to disputes between various
property owners. This overlapping of rights of one over the domains of others has been a
major cause of dispute, irrespective of the nature of the property, both tangible and
intangible. This paper is mainly confined to conflicting domain names issues; perhaps the
solution suggested may be applied for other kinds of intangible property conflicts as well. It
also states that intangible rights in the Internet cannot be regulated by applying the same
principles laid out in management of other intellectual property rights.
Journal of Intellectual Property Rights
Vol 6 May 2001pp 189-199
TRIPS Patent System: Implications for Healthcare and Pharma Industry
B K Keayla
Centre for Study on GATT Issues
A-388 Sarita Vihar, New Delhi-110 044
(Received 24 January 2001)
The paper discusses the merits and demerits of the TRIPS Agreement and its implications for
healthcare and pharma industry. Implications of this Agreement would have an adverse
effect on the accessability and affordability of medicines. The existing pricing profile of
developed countries if applied to developing countries would become a serious problem for
the poor people. The UN commission on human rights has thus stated that TRIPS Agreement
constitutes contravention of international human rights law. At the end, the author lists some
critical issues, which need special attention while amending our Patents Act, 1970.
Journal of Intellectual Property Rights
Vol 6 May 2001pp 200-210
Plant Intellectual Property Transfer Mechanisms at Universities
Steven C. Price and Bryan Z. Renk
University of Wisconsin-Madison
WARF Office Building, 610 Walnut Street, Rm. 1215, Madison, Wisconsin 53705
(Received 19 December 2000)
This article discusses two complementary technology transfer systems for plant intellectual
property and presents simple but workable decision trees to be considered along the path
from discovery to revenue sharing.
Journal of Intellectual Property Rights
Vol 6 May 2001pp 211-214
Intellectual Property: Policy and Strategy for 21st Century
Murasoli Maran
Ministry of Commerce and Industry
Udyog Bhavan, New Delhi 110 001
(Received 26 March 2001)
Paper focuses on the concerns of the developing world on IPR and the problems of the
existing IPR system. Problems of biopiracy and its remedial measures are discussed in detail.
The steps taken towards creation of traditional knowledge digital library are mentioned. It
suggests that WHO should be redesigned and expanded to fill up the gaps and remove the
inequities created by the IPR, and to take care of the public health and other needs of the
poor.
Journal of Intellectual Property Rights
Vol 6 May 2001pp 215-226
Tamarind-based Innovations: Analysis of Patents
Bharvi Dutt
National Institute of Science, Technology and Development Studies,
D. K.S.Krishana Marg, New Delhi 110012
(Received 3 April 2001)
The study surveys the world R&D efforts on tamarind-based innovations as reflected
in the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) and European Patent
Office (EPO) free patent search databases. It enlists 62 patents found at both the
databases. A majority of the patents are held by corporations. Since 1992 there is a
slowing down and inconsistency in patenting activity the world over. Innovation
trends during the last ten years, from 1992 to 2001, suggest that food and beverages,
health care, and industrial applications have been the focus of the patenting activity.