The US has kept India unchanged in its 'priority monitoring list' for the protection and enforcement of intellectual property (IP) rights. The US said on Tuesday that India is one of the most challenging economies in the world in this matter.
The US Trade Representative (USTR) admitted that India made 'meaningful progress' to strengthen the IP sector. These include public awareness and growing partnerships with the US but long -term concerns are maintained. There are seven other countries in this list – China, Russia, Indonesia, Chile, Argentina, Mexico and Venezuela. He warned that if the country fails to progress in solving the concerns of America, the USTR can take other action including the international dispute solution system.
The report quoted the annual review progress as saying, “The administration has been keeping a close watch on the developments in the countries included in the priority monitoring list for the past several years. The USTR will review the developments based on the honorarium fixed under the special 301 action plans on these countries in the coming weeks. 'According to the report, the USTR will take appropriate action on the countries failing to resolve the concerns of the US. This may include enforcement actions under Section 301 of the World Trade Organization (WTO) Business Act or other trade agreement of the dispute solution agreement process.
According to the report, the US will continue its activeness on the matter but there are especially patent issues in the context of India. The partners have expressed their concern about 'ambiguity' in the interpretation of Indian law. The USTR said that there is a problem of trademark forgery in India. Apart from this, American brand owners give constant information about the delay in the ongoing action against the trademark and the reduction in quality check. The Department of Industries and Internal Trade Promotion of India has taken the initiative to check the trademark application in less than 30 days but is concerned about the quality and pending actions of the trademark checking the rights of these trademarks.
First Published – April 29, 2025 | 10:31 PM IST
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