WIPO SMEs Newsletter June 2012
By the SMEs Section of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO)
WIPO SMEs Newsletter is a monthly e-publication providing readers with useful intellectual
property (IP) information contained in articles, case studies, forthcoming IP/SMEs relevant events,
and published presentations featured on our web site. We hope you will find it useful and
informative. We encourage you to share the newsletter or items of interest with friends and
colleagues. For past issues and information on the activities of the SMEs Section, please
visit
http://www.wipo.int/sme.
NEWS
EPO and WIPO Sign Agreement to Enhance Co-operation
With the aim of further developing the international patent system to better support
innovation in economies around the globe, the European Patent Office (EPO) and the World
Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) have agreed on
a comprehensive
three-year technical co-operation scheme.
The agreement, signed by EPO President Benoît Battistelli and WIPO Director General Francis
Gurry in Munich on May 3, 2012, is the first of its kind between the two institutions, and
specifically aims at improving the procedural framework of the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) with
a view to increasing its use by patent applicants. Moreover, co-operation also focuses on enhancing
the quality and efficiency of the patent granting process, including patent classification and
searching, and improving access to patent information.
CERN Adopts New Scheme for Easy Access to IP
CERN, the European Organization for Nuclear Research, has adopted a new approach to knowledge
transfer under the label of
CERN
Easy Access IP, an initiative to make it easier for businesses and entrepreneurs to access
intellectual property generated at CERN in the course of its research programs. CERN Easy Access IP
involves granting a free license for selected technologies from CERN’s portfolio..
Focus on User Needs is IP5 Heads Main Priority
At EPO's invitation, the
Heads of the world's five largest
intellectual property offices ("IP5") met in Europe on June 6, 2012 to take stock of the
progress achieved since the launch of the IP5 cooperation in 2007 and explore ways of further
optimizing their joint efforts to improve the quality and efficiency of the examination process for
patents worldwide. These Offices, together, handle nearly 90% of the world's patent
applications.
The IP5 Heads of Offices also met with industry representatives from their respective regions.
At this high-level meeting, - the first of its kind - they sought input from users on their needs
concerning the orientation of the IP5 cooperation. Responding to the views put forward by industry,
the five Heads expressed their common conviction that the focus of future IP5 initiatives should be
even more user-directed.
Colombia Joins the International Trademark System
Colombia became the 87th member of the international trademark system following the deposit of
its instrument of
accession to the Madrid
Protocol for the International Registration of Marks by Vice President Angelino Garzón with
WIPO Director General Francis Gurry on May 29, 2012. The treaty will enter into force with
respect to Colombia, on August 29, 2012.
TRAINING/LEARNING RESOURCES ON IP ASSET MANAGEMENT
General Information on Training of Trainers Program, the SMEs Section, WIPO
The SMEs Section of WIPO supports the organization of national Training of Trainers (TOT)
Programs in countries that have translated and/or adapted the basic materials on IP for Business
published by the Section. The objective of the TOTs is to create a critical mass of trainers in the
country with enough knowledge and skills to provide assistance to SMEs on effective IP asset
management at a basic level. For more details, please see
here.
IP PANORAMA TM Multimedia Toolkit
The IP PANORAMA
™ multimedia toolkit is now available in English, French, Spanish, Arabic, Hungarian,
Vietnamese and Thai versions on or through the pages at
http://www.wipo.int/sme/en/multimedia/ and
http://www.ippanorama.com/. CD-ROMs of the English,
Arabic, French and Spanish versions are also available on request. Anyone interested in
receiving a free copy of the CD-ROM may email
sme@wipo.int , providing the full postal address, including
telephone number, and indicating the purpose for which the CD-ROM would be used.
3rd Session of Step 1 of the 3rd Annual KIPO-WIPO-KAIST-KIPA Advanced International Certificate Course on IPRs & Business in English
The Korean Intellectual Property Office (KIPO), the World Intellectual Property Organization
(WIPO), the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), and the
Korea Invention Promotion Association (KIPA) are jointly offering the Annual
KIPO-WIPO-KAIST-KIPA Advanced International Certificate Course on Intellectual Property Rights and
Business, which is based on the IP PANORAMA multimedia toolkit. Registration to the 3rd online
session of the International Certificate Course will be open from June 18 to 29, 2012.
200 participants would be selected on a first-come-first-served basis.
Please see the following link for more information:
LINKS
Make Research Work for Your Company
This guide, published
under the “USEandDIFFUSE” project of the European Commission, provides small and medium sized
enterprises (SMEs), as well as universities, institutes and other research technology development
organizations (RTDs) with practical, useful and easy to follow advice on how to maximize the impact
of research and development projects involving SMEs by ensuring that the results are effectively
used and disseminated.
Enhancing Innovation Capability and Business Opportunities: Cases of SME-Oriented Applied Research
This paper presents the main
research results of collaboration projects involving an applied research team and SMEs. More than
50 companies participated in these projects, and the companies were mainly production-oriented
SMEs. The applied research projects were conducted in the areas of robotics, simulation and
wireless automation. The main results of the projects are analyzed from the perspectives of
innovation capability and business potential. The aim of the study is to explore what business
opportunities have risen from the collaborative research projects of SMEs and an applied research
team, and how this collaboration has enhanced the innovation capability of the two parties.
How to Draft a Collaborative Research Agreement
A collaborative research agreement has five major parts: (1) statement of objectives, (2)
statement of work, (3) general provisions, (4) budget, and (5) list of materials.
This
article provides a step-by-step discussion of the issues that need to be addressed in each part
of the agreement, emphasizing the importance of crafting an agreement that is mutually beneficial
and, above all, clearly written.
Benchmarking National and Regional Support Services for SMEs in the Field of Intellectual and Industrial Property
This study,
which was commissioned by the European Commission, is to identify, analyze, classify and benchmark
support services for SMEs in the area of intellectual property rights (IPR) as provided in the
EU-27, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Turkey and in a number of non-European countries (USA,
Canada, Japan, and Australia). The project was designed as a comparative benchmarking analysis
focused on the efficiency and effectiveness of public-funded support services aiming at assisting
SMEs on IPR issues.
Study on the Patent Exploitation and Management - JPO
This
research aimed at arriving at a best practice model for patent exploitation and management for
Japanese SMEs and venture companies using the best practices of large companies, and successful
IP-active SMEs as benchmarks. SMEs and venture companies can use this research result as a
guideline for efficiently managing IP so as to better use the IP system for their business
success.
FORTHCOMING EVENT
WIPO Arbitration Workshop, October 18-19, 2012 (Singapore)
Arbitration is a procedure in which a dispute is submitted, by agreement of the parties, to
one or more arbitrators who make a binding decision on the dispute. In choosing arbitration,
the parties opt for a private dispute resolution procedure instead of going to court. The
WIPO Arbitration and Mediation Center will offer an Arbitration Workshop in Singapore, on Thursday,
October 18 and Friday, October 19, 2012. This Workshop will provide intensive basic training
of a practical nature for party representatives in arbitration and for arbitrators, as well as
others wishing to familiarize themselves with the international arbitration process. The
training, which will be conducted by experienced international arbitrators, will focus on the main
principles of international commercial arbitration law and practice, with particular reference
to the practical application of the WIPO Arbitration and Expedited Arbitration Rules in
intellectual property and technology disputes.
Further information is available at
http://www.wipo.int/amc/en/events/
NOTE
The SMEs Section welcomes voluntary contributions of articles, case studies, news items,
useful links and relevant information concerning forthcoming events of interest to entrepreneurs
and SMEs for inclusion in future issues of this newsletter; contributions may be sent by email to
sme@wipo.int.
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Copyright (c) 2012 World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), 34, chemin des
Colombettes, 1211 Geneva, Switzerland
