Indian Trademark Law

Indian trademark law statutorily protects trademarks as per the Trademark Act, 1999 and also under the common law remedy of passing off. Statutory protection of trademark is administered by the Controller General of Patents, Designs and Trade Marks, a government agency which reports to the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP), under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry.

The law of trademark deals with the mechanism of registration, protection of trademark and prevention of fraudulent trademark. The law also provides for the rights acquired by registration of trademark, modes of transfer and assignment of the rights, nature of infringements, penalties for such infringement and remedies available to the owner in case of such infringement.

The law of trademark in India before 1940 was based on the common law principles of passing off and equity as followed in England before the enactment of the first Registration Act, 1875. The first statutory law related to trademark in India was the Trade Marks Act, 1940 which had similar provision like the UK Trade Marks Act, 1938. In 1958, the Trade and Merchandise Marks Act, 1958 was enacted which consolidated the provisions related to trademarks contained in other statutes like, the Indian Penal Code, Criminal Procedure Code and the Sea Customs Act.  The Trade and Merchandise Marks Act, 1958 was repealed by the Trade Marks Act, 1999 and is the current governing law related to registered trademarks.  The 1999 Act was enacted to comply with the provisions of the TRIPS. Though some aspects of the unregistered trademarks have been enacted into the 1999 Act, but they are primarily governed by the common law rules based on the principles evolved out of the judgments of the Courts.  Where the law is ambiguous, the principles evolved and interpretation made by the Courts in England have been applied in India taking into consideration the context of our legal procedure, laws and realities of India. 

According to Section 2 (zb) of the Trade Marks Act, 1999, “trade mark means a mark capable of being represented graphically and which is capable of distinguishing the goods or services of one person from those of others and may include shape of goods, their packaging and combination of colors ” A mark can include a device, brand, heading, label, ticket, name, signature, word, letter, numeral, shape of goods, packaging or combination of colors or any such combinations.

Suzlon Loses Top Spot in India Wind Market Installations

Suzlon Energy Ltd. ceded its position as India’s top wind-turbine supplier in the year ended March 31 for the first time in at least a decade, according to figures from an industry group.

Wind World (India) Ltd., formerly known as Enercon (India) Ltd., took the top spot after installing 454 megawatts of turbine capacity last fiscal year, according to data from the Indian Wind Turbine Manufacturers’ Association. Suzlon trailed with 415 megawatts of installations, while ReGen Powertech Pvt. was third with 273 megawatts.

“The rankings offered a number of surprises as new market entrants pushed aside incumbents,” said Shantanu Jaiswal, a New Delhi-based wind analyst for Bloomberg New Energy Finance.

General Electric Co.’s installations surged more than sixfold to 122 megawatts, the biggest jump among the companies surveyed, according to the IWTMA data. The company’s gain in orders may indicate a shift in customer preferences as GE sells turbines alone in contrast to competitors who include land acquisition and permitting as part of supply deals.

GE won orders from developers such as Greenko Group Plc that are separating project development from turbine orders to improve returns.

Suzlon, which committed India’s biggest convertible bond default in October, reported difficulties in carrying out orders due to a lack of working capital in the past three quarters. The company completed a 95 billion-rupee ($1.8 billion) debt reorganization plan last month that will allow it to execute $7 billion of orders, Group Chief Financial Officer Kirti Vagadia said in an April 23 statement.

‘Regaining Leadership’

The company’s performance last year was hampered by its debt problems and by the suspension of two government incentives, Suzlon said in an e-mailed response to questions today.

“We are confident of regaining market leadership in our home market - that we helped unlock and shape from the start,” the company said. Suzlon shares rose as much as 1.5 percent to 14.57 rupees in Mumbai today and traded at 14.48 rupees as of 11:16 a.m. local time.

Vestas Wind Systems A/S, which tied with GE as the world’s biggest turbine maker, posted an 87 percent drop in installations to 34 megawatts, IWTMA figures showed. The Danish manufacturer, one of the first to enter the Indian market more than 25 years ago, focused on bigger, more profitable markets elsewhere, Jaiswal said.

In total, India wind installations dropped 47 percent on year to 1.7 gigawatts of wind capacity after the expiry of government incentives, according to IWTMA figures.

Globally, a record 48.4 gigawatts of new wind capacity was added in 2012, according to BNEF. A tax incentive drove a record 13.6 gigawatts of installations in the U.S., where GE commissioned 96 percent of its turbines and Vestas sold 40 percent. The U.S. was Vestas’ biggest market.

CCI to probe Cipla, 4 others for anti-competitive practices

NEW DELHI: Fair trade regulator Competition Commission is probing allegation of anti-competitive practices against five entities related to pharmaceutical industry, including drug maker Cipla.

The complaint has been filed against the five entities for allegedly engaging in anti-competition practices in granting stockist licence for medicines in Himachal Pradesh.

The Competition Commission of India (CCI) is probing the allegation against Macleods Pharmaceutical, FDC Ltd, Cipla, Himachal Pradesh Society of Chemist & Druggist Alliance and its President.

the Commission is of the opinion that there exists a prima facie, case to direct the Director General to cause an investigation into the matter," CCI said in an order dated April 11.

CCI observed that the Himachal Pradesh Society of Chemist & Druggist Alliance "appears to be controlling and regulating the appointment of stockist-ship of each and every pharmaceutical company in the state of Himachal Pradesh".

"The evidence placed on record...shows that no one can be appointed as the stockist of any pharmaceutical company in Himachal Pradesh without the NOC (No objection Certificate) of Himachal Pradesh Society of Chemist & Druggist Alliance," CCI noted.

A stockist is a retailer or distributor who has stocks of a certain type of item for sale.

As per a complaint by filed by one Rohit Medical Store, the Society compelled the pharmaceutical firms to grant stockist-ship in the state to those persons who had obtained NOC from it.

The complaint alleged that it was not being granted stockist-ship of Macleods Pharmaceutical, FDC and Cipla due to the condition imposed to obtain NOC from the Society.

In its submissions to CCI the complainant has placed on record a CD wherein the President of the Society in a conversation with employees of Macleods was emphasising that NOC was a must.

Besides, the complainant also submitted a letter showing that NOC was being demanded for appointing him as stockist.

CCI has noted that the conduct of the Society which made it compulsory for the complainant to obtain NOC before appointment as stockist of Macleods and FDC appeared to be in violation of the Competition Act.

"...the said conduct of Himachal Pradesh Society of Chemist & Druggist Alliance, "appears to have restricted the supplies of medicines of Macleods Pharmaceutical and FDC Ltd in the State of Himachal Pradesh," CCI added.

The regulator has asked the Director General to submit his report within a period of 60 days from the communication of this order.

US tax agency IRS knew of targeting conservative groups critical of Barack Obama

WASHINGTON: Senior officials at the US tax agency knew agents were targeting conservative political groups as early as 2011, according to a draft of an inspector general's report that seemingly contradicts public statements by the commissioner of the Internal Revenue Service.

The IRS apologized Friday for what it acknowledged was "inappropriate" targeting of conservative political groups during the 2012 election to see if they were violating their tax-exempt status. The agency blamed low-level employees, saying no high-level officials were aware.

But on June 29, 2011, Lois G. Lerner, who heads the IRS division that oversees tax-exempt organizations, learned at a meeting that groups were being targeted, according to the watchdog's report. At the meeting, she was told that groups with "Tea Party," "Patriot" or "9/12 Project" in their names were being flagged for additional and often burdensome scrutiny, the report says.

"Tea party" and "Patriot" are favorite terms of the small-government conservative movement that has emerged in recent years and is highly critical of President Barack Obama. The "9/12 Project" is a group started by conservative TV personality Glenn Beck.

The revelation that the IRS targeted those groups is becoming a new headache for the Obama administration, which is already confronting a highly polarized, partisan atmosphere in Washington.

Lerner instructed agents to change the criteria for flagging groups "immediately," the report says.

The Treasury Department's inspector general for tax administration is expected to release the results of a nearly yearlong investigation in the coming week.

Among the other revelations, on Aug. 4, 2011, staffers in the IRS' Rulings and Agreements office "held a meeting with chief counsel so that everyone would have the latest information on the issue."

On Jan. 25, 2012, the criteria for flagging suspect groups was changed to, "political action type organizations involved in limiting/expanding Government, educating on the Constitution and Bill of Rights, social economic reform/movement," the report says.

While this was happening, several committees in Congress were writing IRS Commissioner Douglas Shulman to express concern because tea party groups were complaining of IRS harassment.

In Shulman's responses, he did not acknowledge targeting of tea party groups. At a congressional hearing March 22, 2012, Shulman was adamant in his denials.

The portion of the draft report reviewed by the Associated Press does not say whether Shulman or anyone else in the Obama administration outside the IRS was informed of the targeting. It is standard procedure for agency heads to consult with staff before responding to congressional inquiries, but it is unclear how much information Shulman sought.

The IRS has not said when Shulman found out that Tea Party groups were targeted.

G7 smooths divisions over growth, deficit reduction

AYLESBURY: The Group of Seven advanced economies on Saturday appeared to smooth over US-European differences on how to balance deep austerity measures with ways to support fragile growth. G7 finance ministers and central bankers also pledged their commitment to tackling tax evasion during two days of talks in the English countryside, British finance minister George Osborne said.

The United States has put pressure on European nations to scale back their spending cuts amid fears they may harm growth, but Osborne said the meeting in Aylesbury, northwest of London, revealed much common ground.

"This meeting confirmed there are more areas of agreement between us on fiscal policy than is commonly assumed," the chancellor of the exchequer told a press conference afterwards.

He said the G7 had "discussed the importance of having in place credible, country-specific, medium-term fiscal consolidation plans for ensuring sustainable public finances and sustainable growth".

French finance minister Pierre Moscovici appeared to echo Osborne's remarks.

"The consensus is gaining momentum in the way we balance support for growth and fiscal consolidation," he told reporters.

"There is still a real will to reduce the deficits but certainly there is a change of tone" among G7 members, Moscovici added.

The G7 is meanwhile committed to "nurturing" world economic recovery, said Osborne.

"Overall, our discussions over the past two days have reaffirmed that there are still many challenges to securing sustainable global recovery, and we can't take it for granted," he said.

"But we are committed as the advanced economies in playing our part in nurturing that recovery and ensuring a lasting recovery so that we have prosperity in all our countries."

The talks, also attended by top representatives from the European Union and International Monetary Fund, built on last month's wider Group of 20 meeting while looking ahead to next month's G8 summit in Northern Ireland.

The G7 comprises Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United States. The G8 is the G7 plus Russia.

Jaiprakash Power Ventures reports loss of Rs. 122.26 crore in Q4

Jaiprakash Power Ventures Ltd has announced the financial results for the quarter & year ended March 31, 2013.

The Company has posted a net loss of Rs. (1222.60) million for the quarter ended March 31, 2013 where as the same was at net loss of Rs. (67.80) million for the quarter ended March 31, 2012. Total Income is Rs. 3849.50 million for the quarter ended March 31, 2013 where as the same was at Rs. 3137.80 million for the quarter ended March 31, 2012.

The Company has posted a net profit after taxes, minority interest and share of profit of associates of Rs. 3291.50 million for the year ended March 31, 2013 where as the same was at Rs. 4029.50 million for the year ended March 31, 2012. Total Income is Rs. 22908.00 million for the year ended March 31, 2013 where as the same was at Rs. 16863.00 million for the year ended March 31, 2012.

The Group has posted consolidated ne

t profit after taxes, minority interest and share of profit / (loss) of associates of Rs. 3512.10 million for the year ended March 31, 2013 where as the same was at Rs. 4007.30 million for the year ended March 31, 2012. Total Income is Rs. 24970.20 million for the year ended March 31, 2013 where as the same was at Rs. 16863.00 million for the year ended March 31, 2012.

The results under review are in respect of 300 MW Jaypee Baspa II H.E. Plant , 400 MW Jaypee Vishnuprayag H.E. Plant, 1000 MW Jaypee Karcham Wangtoo H.E. Plant and Unit 1 of 2 X 250 = 500 MW Jaypee Bina Thermal Power Plant. The Jaypee Bina Thermal Power Plant had commenced commercial operation of its first unit of 250 MW on August 31, 2012, therefore the results of the current quarter / year are not comparable with the figures of corresponding quarter / year of previous year. Previous year's/ period's figures have been regrouped/ reclassified wherever necessary.

Shares of Jaiprakash Power Ventures Ltd was last trading in BSE at Rs.26.40. The stock hit an intraday high of Rs.26.55 and low of Rs.26.05.

The total traded quantity was 1.60 lakhs compared to 2 week average of 2.64 lakhs.

Source: Equity Bulls

INDIA’S BUDGET 2013

             NEW DELHI: Sports utility vehicles, imported cars and motorcycles, high-end mobile phones, eating out at air-conditioned restaurants and cigarettes will become costlier with Finance Minister P Chidambaram deciding to impose higher taxes on these items.

On the other hand, there is good news for ladies as far as jewellery is concerned as they will be allowed to bring more duty free gold items provided they have stayed out of India for more than year.

Moreover, branded apparels will become cheaper as there will be zero excise duty on the item. Carpets and other textile floor coverings of coir or jute will also become less expensive as they have been fully exempted from excise duty.

In his Budget proposals for 2013-14, Finance Minister P Chidambaram said excise duty on Sports Utility Vehicles (SUV) will be raised to 30 per cent from 27 per cent.

"SUVs occupy greater road and parking space and ought to bear a higher tax... However, the increase will not apply to SUVs registered as taxis," Chidambaram said.

Targeting the "affluent class in India that consumes imported luxury goods such as high end motor vehicles, motorcycles, yachts and similar vessels", he said: "I am sure they will not mind paying a little more."

Subsequently, basic customs duty on new passenger cars and other motor vehicles (high-end cars) costing more than USD 40,000 and/or engine capacity exceeding 3,000cc for petrol run vehicles and exceeding 2500 cc for diesel run vehicles has been hiked 100 per cent from 75 per cent earlier.

Likewise, duty on yachts and similar vessels has also been raised to 25 per cent from 10 per cent.

                In a blow to mobile handset makers, excise duty on instruments priced above Rs 2,000 has been raised to six per cent but the concessional excise duty of one per cent and has been kept unchanged in the case of low priced phones.

Smokers will also have to shell out more for their puffs with Chidambaram training his eyes on them for more tax revenues.

"What does a Finance Minister turn to when he requires resources? The answer is cigarettes. I propose to increase the specific excise duty on cigarettes by about 18 per cent. Similar increases are proposed on cigars, cheroots and cigarillos," he said while delivering the Budget speech.

Eating out at air conditioned restaurants will also become more expensive with the Finance Minister bringing it under the purview of service tax. At present, service tax of 12 per cent does not apply to A/C restaurants that do not serve liquor.

"The distinction is artificial, and I propose to levy service tax on all air conditioned restaurants," he said.

Consumer Items	Impact (Positive or Negative)	Budget Measure
Television set-top boxes	Negative	Customs duty on imported set-top boxes increased from 5% to 10%
Mobile Phones worth more Rs 2000	Negative	Increase in excise duty to 6%
Silk & silk products	Negative	Increase in the customs duty on raw silk from 5% to 15%
Cigarettes and tobacco products	Negative	Increase in the specific excise duty on cigarettes to about 18%. Similar increases are proposed on cigars, cheroots and cigarillos.
Branded Non-Allopathic medicines	Positive	An abatement of 35% on the excise duty on MRP based assessment in respect of branded medicaments of Ayurveda, Unani, Siddha, Homeopathy and bio-chemic systems of medicine
Imported Jewellery	Positive	Duty-free limit on imported jewellery raised to Rs 50,000 in the case of a male passenger and Rs 100,000 in the case of a female passenger
Ready-made Garments	Positive	Zero excise duty' for cotton and manmade sector (spun yarn) at the yarn, fabric and garment stages
Eating Out	Negative	Service tax levied on all air conditioned restaurants
Sports Utility Vehicles (except taxis)	Negative	Excise duty on SUVs increased from 27% to 30%
Environment-friendly vehicles	Positive	The period of concession now available for specified parts of electric and hybrid vehicles extended upto fiscal 2015
Imported Luxury Vehicles	Negative	Increase in the customs duty on imported motor vehicles from 75% to 100%; on motorcycles with engine capacity of 800cc or more from 60% to 75%; and on yachts and similar vessels from 10% to 25%
Home Furnishing and Decor	Positive	Handmade carpets and textile floor coverings of coir or jute exempted from excise duty
Housing Construction	Negative	Increase in the excise duty on marble from Rs 30 per sq. mtr to Rs 60 per sq mtr.
High-end Homes	Negative	For buildings having homes and flats with a carpet area of 2,000 sq.ft. or more or of a value of Rs 1 crore or more, reduction in the rate of abatement on the service tax from 75% to 70%.