Intellectual Property (“IP”) is a valuable asset for a company to advance its commercial success and gain investor goodwill. A company’s patents give it an edge over other players in a market where new goods are introduced every day. Other IP assets such as trademarks and designs help set a brand apart from the rest of the products available in the economy. So, the legal protection provided by IP rights can turn intangible assets into valuable commodities and increase a company’s bargaining power.

On the flip side, highly specialized work such as that required in IP comes with heavy costs and requirements to hire staff with very specific skills. Activities such as patent filing take months (if not years) of rigorous research and paperwork. Today, companies, especially in the Information Technology (“IT”) sector, file thousands of patents in a year that require thorough work and would mean substantial capital being dedicated to this instead of the company’s core competencies. Further, companies may face a dearth of employees to handle a sudden increase in IP- related work but the demand continues to rise every day given the tough competition in this era of the technology revolution.

The most optimal solution to this is outsourcing the IP department of companies to specialized firms and service providers. It can lead to drastic cuts in costs and an efficient mechanism for IP filing and prosecution undertaken by experts in the field. Outsourcing by businesses can ensure efficient conduct of operations while minimizing costs to ensure stakeholders’ satisfaction. Resultantly, the companies can channelize their resources into the core functions of the organization rather than areas where they do not have the requisite expertise. Research on outsourcing indicates that the impact of the activity is an aggregate of cost reduction, growth in productivity, and an increase in profitability.

India has come up as a prime location for outsourcing due to the rich talent of its educated population and the significance of the technology sector in the economy. It has a competent pool of professionals and a stable legal framework. Big companies such as Microsoft have been outsourcing their patent filing work to India for a while now. Concerns about overseas communications and transactions are no longer issues in today’s globalized economy. There are various Service Providers in India now that provide one-stop solutions to all needs that a company may have with respect to its IP management. They have vast databases for searches and in-house experts to draft and file applications swiftly. So, it is recommended that companies shift to outsourcing their IP work to a thriving economy such as India for their own long-term benefit and growth.

Author:  Aparajita Kaul, Intern at Global Patent Filing. In case of any queries please contact/write back to us at support@globalpatentfiling.com.