About Intellectual Property IP Training IP Outreach IP for… IP and... IP in... Patent & Technology Information Trademark Information Industrial Design Information Geographical Indication Information Plant Variety Information (UPOV) IP Laws, Treaties & Judgements IP Resources IP Reports Patent Protection Trademark Protection Industrial Design Protection Geographical Indication Protection Plant Variety Protection (UPOV) IP Dispute Resolution IP Office Business Solutions Paying for IP Services Negotiation & Decision-Making Development Cooperation Innovation Support Public-Private Partnerships The Organization Working with WIPO Accountability Patents Trademarks Industrial Designs Geographical Indications Copyright Trade Secrets WIPO Academy Workshops & Seminars World IP Day WIPO Magazine Raising Awareness Case Studies & Success Stories IP News WIPO Awards Business Universities Indigenous Peoples Judiciaries Genetic Resources, Traditional Knowledge and Traditional Cultural Expressions Economics Gender Equality Global Health Climate Change Competition Policy Sustainable Development Goals Enforcement Frontier Technologies Mobile Applications Sports Tourism PATENTSCOPE Patent Analytics International Patent Classification ARDI – Research for Innovation ASPI – Specialized Patent Information Global Brand Database Madrid Monitor Article 6ter Express Database Nice Classification Vienna Classification Global Design Database International Designs Bulletin Hague Express Database Locarno Classification Lisbon Express Database Global Brand Database for GIs PLUTO Plant Variety Database GENIE Database WIPO-Administered Treaties WIPO Lex - IP Laws, Treaties & Judgments WIPO Standards IP Statistics WIPO Pearl (Terminology) WIPO Publications Country IP Profiles WIPO Knowledge Center WIPO Technology Trends Global Innovation Index World Intellectual Property Report PCT – The International Patent System ePCT Budapest – The International Microorganism Deposit System Madrid – The International Trademark System eMadrid Article 6ter (armorial bearings, flags, state emblems) Hague – The International Design System eHague Lisbon – The International System of Appellations of Origin and Geographical Indications eLisbon UPOV PRISMA Mediation Arbitration Expert Determination Domain Name Disputes Centralized Access to Search and Examination (CASE) Digital Access Service (DAS) WIPO Pay Current Account at WIPO WIPO Assemblies Standing Committees Calendar of Meetings WIPO Official Documents Development Agenda Technical Assistance IP Training Institutions COVID-19 Support National IP Strategies Policy & Legislative Advice Cooperation Hub Technology and Innovation Support Centers (TISC) Technology Transfer Inventor Assistance Program WIPO GREEN WIPO's Pat-INFORMED Accessible Books Consortium WIPO for Creators WIPO ALERT Member States Observers Director General Activities by Unit External Offices Job Vacancies Procurement Results & Budget Financial Reporting Oversight

WIPO University Initiative

September 2006

At a workshop in Skopje, University IP Coordinators from Macedonia, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Serbia and Montenegro discover how to use free online databases to conduct basic patent searches. (Courtesy of EPO CARDS)
At a workshop in Skopje, University IP Coordinators from Macedonia, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Serbia and Montenegro discover how to use free online databases to conduct basic patent searches. (Courtesy of EPO CARDS)

The WIPO University Initiative is one of several WIPO programs which encourages universities and R&D institutions in developing countries to create, protect and exploit IP assets. Participating institutions are provided with a set of IP reference materials, and a University IP Coordinator is designated in each institution to disseminate information and advice on IP matters to students and staff. The coordinators liaise with WIPO and with a contact in the national IP office, and are given access to training.

The program now counts almost 90 participating universities and R&D institutions worldwide. This enables the coordinators to become part of a network to facilitate the exchange of information and experience.

Close-up on Croatia

Universities in Croatia have embraced the scheme with enthusiasm. Three research institutions - the University of Zagreb, the Rudjer Boskovic Institute, and the Brodarski Institute – each appointed an IP coordinator in 2005. The three coordinators, assisted by the State Intellectual Property office of the Republic of Croatia (SIPO), are working together to increase understanding in their science and technology departments of how to use IP to capitalize on research results.

The coordinators have participated in regional workshops organized by WIPO in partnership with the CARDS (Community Assistance for Reconstruction, Development and Stabilisation) regional IP program of the European Patent Office. They have received training on IP management in universities, and on how to search IP information in online databases. Together with SIPO, two of the institutes are hosting further workshops this year, and all three will participate later this year in a national seminar on IP Infrastructure for the Croatian R&D Sector under the CARDS program.

The coordinators have worked jointly to put together a set of IP teaching materials and guidelines, drawing on the information package provided by WIPO. At the Rudjer Boskovic Institute, a coordination mechanism has been established between the technical faculties and commercial and legal departments in order to improve information and assistance available to scientific staff.

In May 2006, the Rudjer Boskovic Institute set up Rudjer Innovations Ltd. The agency manages the evaluation, protection and exploitation of IP generated by the Institute’s researchers, and aims to become a center of excellence of IP in Croatia. Similar arrangements are planned in other R&D institutes and universities in Croatia.

 

Acknowlegements: Yumiko Hamano, WIPO University Initiative

For more information on the University Initiative program see www.wipo.int/uipc/en/

The WIPO Magazine is intended to help broaden public understanding of intellectual property and of WIPO’s work, and is not an official document of WIPO. The designations employed and the presentation of material throughout this publication do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of WIPO concerning the legal status of any country, territory or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries. This publication is not intended to reflect the views of the Member States or the WIPO Secretariat. The mention of specific companies or products of manufacturers does not imply that they are endorsed or recommended by WIPO in preference to others of a similar nature that are not mentioned.