ABSTRACT
“Intellectual property rights” are a set of exclusive rights, awarded by a state, for a limited period of time, to inventors, artists, and authors in exchange for public disclosure of their inventions and creative works. Intellectual property rights create, nurture, and promote an innovation ecosystem and provide a secure environment to inventors, artists, and authors. It is believed that inventors, artists, and authors will be incentivized under the system to make inventions or create original works as they can reap the benefits of their innovations. In fact, innovations impact not only the creators, but also the users in a remarkable manner. Thus, innovations generate employment, increase trade and commerce, expand the economy, and improve the quality of life for everyone. Intellectual property rights are territorial (except copyrights). Therefore, every country decides its intellectual property rights system based on its vision, needs, and international norms. Hence, differences exist in the intellectual property rights systems of different nations/regions. In this chapter, we outline a select set of intellectual property rights systems—that of United States of America, European Union, China, and India—relevant organizations, and international treaties/conventions, such as Patent Cooperation Treaty and Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights.
