Webinar On “Accessible Intellectual Property Rights To The Persons With Disabilities”

Post published:November 26, 2021
Post category:Seminar & Webinars
Reading time:8 mins read

GNLU Centre for Disability Studies in collaboration with Department for the Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), Ministry of Industry and Commerce, Government of India, IPR Chair, GNLU, and GNLU-Microsoft Chair Organizes Webinar On “Accessible Intellectual Property Rights To The Persons With Disabilities”

About GNLU

Gujarat National Law University (GNLU), Gandhinagar, is one of the premier national law universities of India, accredited with an ‘A’ grade by NAAC. The University is established under the Gujarat National Law University Act, statutory legislation passed by the Government of Gujarat in the year 2003. The university offers Under Graduate, Post Graduate, and Ph.D. Courses in law as well as many interdisciplinary areas. It is one of the leading centers for teaching and learning with respect to legal education in India. The University is a forerunner in the field of interdisciplinary research as well. The University has established various centers of excellence to carry out research, training, and extension activities. One of the important areas of our academic and scholarly focus is a Centre dedicated to research and training on disability studies launched on 2nd October 2019.

About GCDS

The University established GNLU Centre for Disability Studies (GCDS) on 02nd October 2019 with an aim to work for the rights of disabled people and promotion of social justice through teaching and research in the interdisciplinary areas of sociology, social work, law, and policy. Through curriculum development, research projects, and disability studies, the Centre aims to provide meaningful contributions in the areas of disability and human rights, disability and society, accessibility and reasonable accommodations, inclusive education, gender, and disability, amongst others. With an objective to accomplish its goals enshrined in the mission and vision of the Centre, GCDS is organizing this webinar in collaboration with DPIIT – IPR Chair, GNLU, and GNLU Microsoft IPR chair.

About DPIIT – IPR Chair, GNLU

DPIIT-IPR Chair was established under the Scheme for Pedagogy & Research in IPRs for Holistic Education & Academia (SPRIHA) by the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Government of India. Among a few eligible Institutions, Gujarat National Law University has been accorded approval to set up the IPR Chair in 2018 to promote Intellectual Property (IP) education and foster IP research.

About GNLU Microsoft IPR Chair

For the creation and development of superior quality Intellectual Capital through research in the area of IPR law and Policy, for increasing awareness for IPR and promotion of long term research in India, GNLU-Microsoft Chair on IPR Law and Policy Research has been established in the year 2013 with the objective of Policy Research, education and awareness through multi-disciplinary Approach, providing a framework for analyzing the impact of IPR law and Policy on development and growth of Indian Economy and dissemination of knowledge and information on IPR Laws and Policy through teaching and outreach Programmes. The Chair has conducted many successful training and extension activities in the past and undertaken research projects.

About the Webinar

A print disability is a learning disability, a visual impairment, or a physical disability due to which individuals with such disability cannot access print in the standard way. For them, work is perceived by either visual or auditory (or both) senses. The persons with print disabilities find themselves at an absolute disadvantage with protected works perceivable only through print format. Individuals with cognitive disabilities express difficulty in processing complex information, requiring a transformation of material into more easily understood forms. The Marrakesh Treaty seeks to dismantle copyright barriers by requiring countries that ratify the Treaty to make an exception to domestic copyright law for visually impaired and print disabled people. Indian Copyright Law has adopted similar provisions in 2012.

There are many assistive technologies that help people with disabilities to learn, communicate and function better. According to the “WIPO Technology Trends Report 2021: Assistive Technologies”, over 1 billion people currently need assistive technology – a figure expected to double in the next decade as populations age. However globally, only 1 in 10 people currently have access to the assistive products they need. The report shows that innovations, ranging from small improvements in existing products to cutting-edge developments in frontier technologies, can greatly improve the lives of persons with functional limitations. The Tech Trends report identified more than 130,000 patents related to conventional and emerging assistive technologies published between 1998 and mid-2020. Intellectual property has enabled the growth in innovation in assistive technologies. However, there is a requirement of making these technologies more inclusive.

In this webinar, we aim to discuss the rights of the persons with disabilities with the Copyright Amendment Act, 2012 and Marrakesh Treaty, to understand the reality of accessibility of the Reading Material to the person with a disability as well as assistive technologies and their inclusiveness with respect to the patents.