On Wed, Dec 1, 2010 at 11:32 PM, Sonia Katyal <[email protected]>wrote:
> Hi everyone, > > Ok dear Udhay--your posting sparked a thought that I often have on this > list. One of the things that I, my coauthor Eduardo, and others discuss is > whether or not there is a sort of cultural variance surrounding intellectual > property--e.g. in places like India, China, and elsewhere, there is a much > higher tolerance for some forms of infringement than in the United States > (where it has been driven more underground due to, among other things, the > criminalization of copyright infringement). But here's what I find > interesting--from what I can tell (though please correct me if folks > disagree), India's film industry appears to be pushing for greater changes > in the law, moving towards a higher standard of protection. However, on the > tech side, I sometimes wonder if the lower levels of protection in IP (or > the perception that this is so--or at least the lower number of IP suits in > India)--has contributed to greater innovation. > Reverse engineering of generic drugs under a legal regime that permitted a process patent rather than a product patent is an obvious example. Our non-prosecution for plagiarism - actually, make that our complete disregard of plagiarism as a possible wrong - has helped with a lot of innovation in Bollywood, from scripts, music to production techniques. In fact, I'd say blind cogging has helped us to have a major film industry in the first place. The recent case of Aroon Purie who had "inadvertently" cogged a piece from Slate magazine for whi Letter from the Editor in India Today is a clear example of how minor an outcry plagiarism raises in India. As a lawyer, I can tell you that finding an Indian treatise which is original in thought, structure or the arguments presented is rarer than finding oxygen in a black hole. Seervai's treatise on constitutional law is probably the only one that comes to mind. Most other authors simply cog existing works or judgments without much primary thought. This does help to produce extremely useful compendiums (trying to pass off as treatises) in various areas of the law which are cheaper and hence more accessible to law students. I'm sure there are similar examples in other professional fields. Regards, Nikhil Mehra Advocate, Supreme Court of India Tel: (+91) 9810776904 Res: C-I/10 AIIMS Campus Ansari Nagar New Delhi - 110029.
