India Launches Mobile App to Help Startups, SMEs Protect their IPRs
The Modi government, on 14th October 2019, has launched a dedicated mobile app and website to assist Indian startups and SMEs with the Intellectual Property Rights (IPRs). DPIIT, the Department for the Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade along with Qualcomm and National Law University, Delhi, has developed these dedicated tools. Guruprasad Mohapatra, secretary DPIIT, said that startups and small companies are more tuned into investment-making and risk-taking, but lack legal knowledge. The recently launched website and app, which aim at aiding startups and SMEs to learn to safeguard and maximize their innovations, would be useful for enterprises and startups holding great promise for the nation and its economy. In the present age, where we are at the inception of the fourth industrial revolution, the interface between technology and law is continuously growing. Therefore, it is essential to have a specialized site and app that could help startups and SMEs with the Intellectual Property (IP) processes, he added. Like the Start-up India scheme, launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi three years ago, the site and app launched now would also encourage the culture of innovation in India. At present, there are over 20,000 recognized start-ups running in all 28 states. Although IPRs obtained by Indian startups are considered imperative for the success of the fourth industrial revolution, the