TRIPS AGREEMENT: The IRIPS Agreement effective January 1995 sets out the minimum standards of protection for each category of intellectual property rights. The categories included in the Agreement are:
➡ Copyrights and Related Rights
➡ Trademarks,
➡ Geographical Appellations,
➡ Identical Design,
➡ Patents,
➡ Layout Designs (Topographies) of Integrated Circuits.
➡ Protection of Undisclosed Information, and
➡ Control of ti-Competitive Practices Contractual Licenses.
The Agreement also allows members to provide more extensive protection of intellectual property if they so wish. Besides, members have the freedom to decide on the appropriate method of implementing the provisions of the Agreement matching their own legal system and practice.
There are also differences of opinion about the definitions of invention and discovery. There is no reason to confuse between invention and discovery and it should be clearly stated that more “discovery” is not entitled to receive patent protection.
Clear exclusion should be made of the following from being patented, Mathematical or otherwise scientific theories and purely abstract concepts; commercial, financial, advertisement. Accountancy and similar schemes; and surgical procedures and programs by itself presentation of information; rules of games: and surgical procedures and therapeutic methods for human and animal body, also excluded as non-inventions are the whole or part of any live natural being and biological material found in nature. Even isolated thereof and the natural biological processes.
Resume statutory exclusions should be made of the inventions offensive to morals. Good custom security, public order and public health items resulting from the transformation of the atomic nucleus, and the whole or an art of living bodied even though not found in nature) excepting transgenic micro-organisms that satisfy all the patent whole or part of plant requirement (transgenic microorganisms should be defined as organisms that: satisfy all the patent whole or whole or plant or animals, which express a future not found in Nature as a result of direct human intervention in their genetic composition).
IPR should be prepared by incorporating the following provisions of the TRIPS Agreement the intellectual Property Law:
TRIPS AGREEMENT: Compulsory licensing:
Under Article, 31 of the IRPS Agreement, compulsory licenses can be granted to third parties on public health grounds. There is sufficient proof of the existence of such practices in the developed countries including the USA, France and Germany. Therefore, this should be clearly mentioned in the new patent legislation.
Parallel imports:
Where a patented product is marketed at a lower price in another country, governments can allow parallel import from that country in order to take advantage of the price differential but only if this option is but in their national legislation. Therefore this should be clearly mentioned in the new patent legislation.
Price controls:
Nothing is mentioned in the IRIPS agreement that prevents the national governments from establishing a system of prose control provided they do not discriminate between the foreign and local suppliers. Therefore, this should be clearly nentione4d in the new patent legislation.
The Bangladesh scenario:
Bangladesh like many developing countries does not yet have the capability and economic strength to stand the onslaught of the intellectual property rights regime. But certain measures are necessary to cope with the issue. The country has enacted a copyright act. Effective 18 July 2000. The Act basically deals with only intellectual properties. The Act says that creation would be considered Bangladeshi where the creator of which products is a citizen of Bangladesh or which have been published in Bangladesh for the first time and in case of an unpublished creation whether the owner was a citizen of Bangladesh. This fallow within the criteria of geographical appellation of intellectual property.
There are two other Acts, called the Trademarks Act, and Patent and Design Rules. The most serious problem with this Act is that there is no complete registry of Bangladesh intellectual property despite having a provision in the Law. The Trademarks Act and patent and Design Rule need updating to match the global situation.
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