Of India’s (IP) concerns with U.S.

On 22^nd September, the Center for Internet and Society (CIS) India wrote an open letter to Prime Minister to look into certain IP law related concerns for India ahead of the U.S. – India talks this week (ongoing). There were two major IP issues addressed:

1. The U.S. should ratify the Marrakesh Treaty for visually impaired persons; and
2. The Indian government should not enter into the Trans Pacific Partnership Negotiations (TPP).

Marrakesh Treaty

India is a signatory to the Marrakesh Treaty which calls for a balance between Copyright Laws and Limitations, Exceptions for People with Visual and Print Disability. The Indian Copyright Amendments, 2012  also witnessed the inclusion of an exception for reproducing published works into Braille for the convenience of such visually disabled individuals. The World Blind Union had earlier released[1]in its ‘Right to Read’ Campaign that almost 90% of all the published works was inaccessible to the visually impaired individuals, and the same has been cited by the CIS in its letter.[2] India’s Copyright Amendment 2012 allows room for compulsory licensing of works for the use of visually impaired individuals (prior to Marrakesh Treaty it had been introduced in India.) The Marrakesh Treaty can come into effect only after 20 countries ratify it; currently the number is stuck at 9 countries which does not include the U.S. The letter requests that the U.S. should also sign the treaty since it is home to some of the largest publishing houses and would encourage a proper implementation –of the treaty and India’s new amendment.

Trans Pacific Partnership

The TPP is undoubtedly one of the most controversial regional agreements in the current times. It has included provisions which call stringent IP laws leaving lesser rooms for exceptions and limitations and stand to the benefit of mostly U.S. based authors, Entertainment Industry and dangerously their pharmaceuticals. The TPP discussions have been very cryptic till date and hence, raised the bar for suspicion. Member countries like Australia and New Zealand have faced protests by citizens against adopting TPP provisions which hamper public health and are solely lead by the U.S. (for its Corporate houses)[3]. The CIS letter raises concerns about the U.S. making an attempt at including India in the TPP Agreement, it also makes a reference to the report of Hon’ble Ambassador Shri Arun  K. Singh where he has disagreed with the U.S. report suggesting TPP is beneficial for India and U.S. both (clearly the benefit is unilateral). India is currently in the stage of using and developing technology and cannot afford to lose out on limitations and exceptions of IP enforcement. Also, it is necessary to reiterate that India is currently the largest manufacturer of generics and compliance with U.S. dominated patent laws will inadvertently hit the pharma generics really hard. The letter simply requests the PM not to accede to the U.S. intent of making India a party to the TPP.

On a slightly different note it is interesting to note that owing to the high price of  cancer drugs in the U.S. ,at the time when they are close to losing patent protection, has lead to the U.S. government looking for alternatives. In a recent article it has been stated that New Delhi will be providing cheaper ‘off-patent’ drugs to the U.S. to benefit the American citizens.[4] It will be interesting to see how the U.S. intends to continue with its stringent Patent enforcement regime even in the future when it is clearly beginning to affect the public health concerns (affordability and accessibility).

It can be stated that the CIS has pointed out two major IP issues that the government needs to be aware of at the time when it is negotiating with the U.S. for better bilateral relations (inevitably dealing with IP issues as well). It is worth looking out for how the negotiations pan out!

Image Courtesy: http://www.bilaterals.org/?leaked-investment-chapter-of-the 

Footnotes

[1] Worldblindunion.org,. ‘Marrakesh Treaty – Right To Read Campaign’. Web. 26 Sept. 2015.

[2] Prakash, Pranesh. ‘Open Letter To PM Modi On Intellectual Property Rights Issues On His Visit To The United States Of America In September, 2015’. The Centre for Internet and Society. N.p., 2015. Web. 26 Sept. 2015.

[3] It’s Our Future,. ‘It’s Our Future – Kiwi Voices On The TPPA’. N.p., 2015. Web. 26 Sept. 2015.

[4] Rajghatta, Chidanand. ‘India To Supply Generic Cancer Drug To U.S.’. Times of India. N.p., 2015. Web. 26 Sept. 2015.