KOCHI:
Maker Village in Kochi has won the ‘Incubation Centre Of The Year With Prominent IP Culture 2019’ in recognition of an “exemplary structured Intellectual Property system” developed by the country’s biggest electronic hardware incubator.
The award, instituted by the IP Promotion Outreach Foundation (IPPOF), was given to Maker Village CEO Prasad Balakrishnan Nair at a function in Ahmedabad where the non-governmental company is headquartered.
Maker Village “has contributed their best to the development of Intellectual Property subject”, pointed out IPPOF, renowned for its services in the IP sector for the past two decades. The foundation strives to strengthen awareness about IP rights among startups, entrepreneurs as well as aspiring business persons. It also holds workshops and short- and long-term courses on the subject.
The IPPOF said it chose Maker Village from among recognised incubation centres across the country. The list comprised establishments that performed exceedingly well in the IP sector in the 2018-19 fiscal.
Nair noted that Maker Village has been working towards deepening understanding about IP rights among startups. “We also train them on securing patent rights,” the CEO pointed out. “Four startups in our Village have earned IP rights, one of them international.
As many as 45 companies we are incubating are in various phases of earning patents.” Maker Village has 68 startups of which products of 27 have earned first sale deeds. Another 26 companies are on their way to launching products.