Introduction:
In today’s worldwide innovative economy, the web has become a revolutionary platform that is directed to empower both consumers and businesses by creating a connection between the two in the least possible levels. Over the years, the conventional ways of trading and doing business has been transformed with the use of the internet. When it comes to e-commerce, Intellectual Property (IP) is the foremost neglected, yet it is the best value bearing constituent which is because it’s either less comprehended or because its significant connections to e-commerce don’t seem to be evident. E-commerce, compared to the other platform involves trading in goods and services that are supported IP and it’s licensing. Therefore, online businesses should make sincere efforts to confirm their activities are free from IP risks which could hamper or kill their businesses.
Intellectual Property (IP) is identified as a legal term that has been related to industrial property with copyrights and other rights within a similar field. It’s a process where someone creates anything from their mind like inventions, literary, artistic works, designs, symbols, names, and pictures which are utilized in commerce.[1] The essence of IP in India is well established in the slightest degree levels i.e. Statutory, Administrative, and Judicial.
Importance of Intellectual Property in E-Commerce
Intellectual property law protects online businesses from the disclosure of trade secrets which further signifies protection against unfair competition. This makes IP an asset that is more valuable than owning a tangible asset. This may be seen within the technological sector and also the digital economy. If there were no IP practices and statutes governing the functioning of IP laws, no new creation of works could take place and someone’s efforts and labor would get poached and might similarly get spread around the world without paying any sum amount to its creator for his labor on the invention.
Role of IP in E-Commerce
Intellectual Property plays a really vital role in e-commerce within the following ways mentioned below:
- Coming in the field of digital economy and carrying out e-business without the presence of IP laws and practices, starting from music, software, design to almost everything, the work can be stolen or duplicated over the world without even paying the owners for his or her efforts and labor. The IP laws help in safeguarding businesses from these sorts of unlawful trade activities over the net and also protect individuals from unfair competition.
- IP is additionally involved within the working of E-Commerce as components like software, chips, networks, designs, routers, to call some, are all sorts of IP which are to be protected in order to permit the functioning of the web.
- All E-Commerce and online businesses are some sort of supported product or patent licensing. As a range of technologies are needed to make a product, most online businesses either outsource the event of some components or share technologies using licensing agreements.
- E-Commerce based businesses consider IP as their most powerful asset and sometimes own Patent portfolios and trademarks to reinforce the worth of their online businesses.
Infringement of Intellectual Property
E-commerce websites who are within the business of selling and buying of products often infringe the IP laws by portraying the outline of products and showing their images. There are several essentials that must be followed for not infringing the IP laws are as follows:
- It must be your own original creation.
- Permission should be granted by the creator to use.
- It must be within the ambit of public domain
- It should be contained under fair use.
Protection of Intellectual Property
One of the common mistakes made by the owner of the property is to reveal the IP before filing for defense of that property. Similarly, in many countries making trade secrets public automatically dissolves any kind of protection.
Essential elements of Intellectual Property having protection
There are several parts of websites which are entrusted to the protection of different kinds of Intellectual Property which are as follows:
- E-Commerce systems, search engines, or other technical Internet tools are granted protection under patents.
- Software includes the text-based HTML code which is utilized in websites and it’s absolute with a shield under the Copyrights Act or patents law, depending upon the national law.
- Website design is protected under copyrights.
- All the web site content within the style of writing, photographs, graphics, music, and videos are protected under Copyrights.
- Copyrights and single database laws protect the databases.
- Business Names, Logos, Product names, domain names, and other signs posted on the internet are covered under Trademarks.
- Computer-generated Graphic Symbols, displays, graphic user interfaces (GUIs) & even webpages are protected under Industrial Design Law.
- Hidden Aspects of an internet site like (confidential graphics, text files, codes, algorithms, programs, or other technical descriptions, data flow charts, logic flow charts, user manuals, data structures, and database contents) are protected under Trade Law Secrets.
Trademarks Protection
In the online world of business and E-Commerce, Trademarks carry considerable importance in making a brand image by growing or selling the companies. A registered trademark also makes it easier to require action at law and proceedings against brands that might create infringement on someone’s business assets online.
Patents Protection
Patents offer a substantial amount of incentives to the researchers and innovators within the field of E-Commerce and online businesses. Patents help in licensing, contracting to outsource, and building strategic relationships involved in E-Commerce. Patents not only help in recording and developing new ideas for an E-Commerce business, but also step up the sales of your products by adding exclusive features unavailable with the opposite competitors within the online business.
Copyrights Protection
In this digital era, copyrights play a major role in safeguarding the creative content and data available on the websites. With rapid digitalization, the copyright owners seek copyrights protection to stop any unauthorized copying or distribution of their works presented online. Moreover, many technological prevention methods like Encryption and Watermarking may be used to safeguard the IP rights of online businesses.
Ways to protect a website under IP Rights
There are essential measures that are mentioned in IP Laws that protect an internet site from abusive use. These are as follows:
- Protection of IP Rights.
- To let people know that the content is protected under IP Laws.
- To confirm people know what all content is often utilized by them.
- Controlling access and use of website content.
Conclusion
The E-Commerce industry is growing at a very rapid rate and there are always enough possible ways in which one can access other person’s work and creation without giving that person enough credibility. And in safeguarding these types of activities Intellectual Property plays a vital role. In a nutshell, it can be noted that without Intellectual Property Rights, the fair compliance of activities and practices can never be achieved in such a dynamic and diverse world of E-Commerce and online businesses. With the rapid growth in technological inventions, IP rights help in safeguarding and maintaining the secrecy of trade activities, while providing the actual share of profits to the IP Right owners. Therefore, it will not be wrong to say that IP Rights stand as a protective guard to the activities of the E-Commerce arena whose rate of success is completely dependent upon the implementation of effective IP Rights measures.
References:
[1] World Intellectual Property Organization. (2008). WIPO intellectual property handbook : policy, law and use. Wipo.
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