TRADE MARKS OF INDIAN COs TO BE PROTECTED ABROAD

With more and more Indian companies going global, the government has decided to protect the trademarks of Indian firms abroad. India is planning to become a part of the Madrid International Protocol (MIP) for trademarks under the World Intellectual Property Rights Organisation (WIPO). The protocol has a 78-country membership. Indian companies will be able to get trademark protection in all these countries by simply filing one trademark application at the local or regional trademark office. If the trademark office of a designated country does not refuse protection within a specified period, the mark is considered as registered. MIP also allows for recording subsequent changes and renewal of trademarks by the same single step procedure.