pharmaceutical products and seek immediate government approval for marketing based on the original developer's data.
Trademarks and Counterfeiting
The United States continues to observe significant delays associated with cancellation and opposition proceedings at the administrative level of the Trademark Registry, which are exacerbated by delays in India's judicial processes. While opposition and cancellation proceedings are complex matters that require careful consideration, the reported backlog of more than 160,000 cases represents a significant challenge for companies trying to invest and build brands in India. These delays undermine enforcement mechanisms and their ability to discourage infringing conduct. The United States urges India to take steps to expedite proceedings before the Trademark Registry.
Additionally, the production, sale, distribution, import, and export of counterfeit goods in India remains very troubling. In a study published in September 2013 by the International Chamber of Commerce and the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry analyzing seven key industry sectors vulnerable to counterfeiting and smuggling (automotive parts, alcohol, computer hardware, personal goods, packaged foods, mobile phones, and tobacco products), researchers concluded that unauthorized counterfeiting and smuggling caused average sales losses to right holders of 21.7 percent or approximately $11.9 billion in 2012. Collectively, the Indian government's economic loss tied to these illicit activities totaled approximately $4.26 billion, according to the study. This problem is particularly troubling with respect to the production and distribution of counterfeit pharmaceuticals. While India is one of the world's largest producers of legitimate, high-quality generic pharmaceuticals, and the United States is India's largest single export market for generic pharmaceuticals, India is also the top supplier of counterfeit pharmaceuticals to the United States, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection data and analysis.
Trade Secrets
The United States is increasingly concerned about trade secret protection in India, particularly the reported difficulty in obtaining remedies and damages. India appears to rely primarily upon the law of contract to provide trade secret protection. Although India's contract-based approach may address the theft of trade secrets where a contract has been breached, India's approach may be less effective in covering situations in which there is no contractual relationship, such as in cases of theft by a business competitor. Although Indian law does provide for some remedies, including injunctive relief, in practice, damages can be very difficult to obtain. Finally, because India's court system reportedly lacks sufficient procedural safeguards to protect trade secrets or other confidential information divulged through discovery in civil or criminal litigation, there is a risk that such information may be disclosed publicly in the course of judicial proceedings.
Localization Trends
The United States commends India's recognition of the importance of innovation in connection with its efforts to promote manufacturing, but urges India to resist imposing discriminatory or other trade-restrictive measures in pursuit of that objective at the expense of adequate and effective protection of IPR. The United States welcomes India's decision to revise the Preferential Market Access (PMA) policy, which previously contained elements that appeared to
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