Intellectual property protection applications up by 14% in first quarter

By Bernie Cahiles-Magkilat

Applications for intellectual property rights protection have increased by 14 percent in the first quarter this year versus the same last year, according to the Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOPHL).

IPOPHL Director General Josephine R. Santiago said the rise in IP application reflects the increase in demand for protection of new technology and inventions, as well as increased protection of trademarks in business.

Applications for patents (covering inventions, utility models, and industrial designs) and trademarks received by the IPOPHL reached 10,024 in the first quarter of the year or 14 percent higher than the 8,761 IP applications in the same period in 2017.

Trademarks took up bulk of the IP applications in the period, numbering to 8,400 applications and having a share of 84 percent of the total.

Trademarks serve as “source-identifiers,” meant to distinguish one business’ goods or services from that of another, and can be a significant marketing tool for enterprises to establish brand recognition.

This was followed by patent-inventions with 986 or 38 percent up from 717 last year.

Patents for utility model followed with 331 or 59 percent higher than 208 in first quarter followed by industrial design with 307 from 373 last year.

Known in jurisprudence as a “silent salesman,” a trademark helps create goodwill among the consuming public, evoking a guaranty of quality associated with the product.

“The rise of intellectual property applications reflects the spreading awareness among the public of the importance of trademarks, due to our key partnerships with media, the Department of Trade and Industry, and other strategic partners. Apart from this collaboration, IPOPHL’s strategic presence has steadily been gaining traction on our social media platforms,” said Santiago.

“Of course, these efforts are underpinned by the growing understanding, appreciation, and relevance of trademarks among micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs), ultimately driving the increased demand for protection,” she added.

IPOPHL has 12 satellite offices, housed in DTI offices in select cities: Cebu, Davao, Baguio, Pampanga, Legazpi, General Santos, Iloilo, Cagayan de Oro, Tuguegarao, Tacloban, and Dumaguete. The head office is within the IPOPHL office in the National Capital Region.

A patent is a bundle of exclusive rights granted for an invention which consists of product, a process or improvement of either that meets the requirements of industrial applicability, inventiveness, and novelty. As a bundle of exclusive rights, a patent allows the inventor to allow or prohibit others from making, using, selling, or importing the product of his invention during the life of the patent.

Utility models, on the other hand, are designed to protect innovations that need not meet the inventive threshold required for a standard patent application. It must, however, still have practical utility, industrial applicability, and novelty. The utility model grants similar exclusive rights as with patents, but have fundamental differences in terms of length of examination, cost, and scope of protection. A utility model, having less requirements to meet, takes a shorter period for examination. It also is a cheaper alternative to patents, because the latter needs the maintenance of annual fees. The term of protection of a patent is for 20 years, a longer period of protection than that of a utility model, which is protected for 7 years.

An industrial design protects the ornamental or aesthetic aspect of an article, and is also a right that gives the owner the exclusive right against unauthorized copying or imitation of the design. The term of protection of an industrial design is 5 years, renewable twice more for the same period of time.

Source >> https://business.mb.com.ph/2018/07/07/intellectual-property-protection-applications-up-by-14-in-first-quarter/