South-East Asia

Enhancing the quality of patent examination results, shortening turnaround times, and decreasing backlogs are common concerns of IPR stakeholders across SEA countries. As the capacities of patent examiners directly affect their productivity and performance, IP Key seeks to support its SEA partner countries through facilitating the development of a collective Training Programme for Patent Examiners of the SEA IP Offices.

IP Key SEA has supported officials from the national IP offices of South-East Asia to attend the EUIPO IP Mediation Conference in Alicante, Spain, which took place on 30-31 May 2019. The conference allowed the participants to learn more on the cutting-edge practices in the field of IP mediation. Additionally, the SEA officials had the opportunity to participate in a session on mediation communication and negotiation techniques, which took place on 29 May, thus preceding the IP Mediation conference.

IP Key SEA and ARISE+ IPR Project Leader Tiago Guerreiro outlined the key IP enforcement tools and databases currently in use in the EU during a Southeast Asia IPR SME Helpdesk webinar on enforcement held on 17 April. The webinar and presentation materials are available for download here.

IP Key SEA teamed up with Spanish football league, LaLiga, to highlight the importance of IP in sports, particularly for football, at World Intellectual Property Day in Bangkok, Thailand on 26 April. The IP Key SEA / LaLiga ‘Support Your Team – Choose Official Products’ exhibition booth at the event featured a display of all 20 LaLiga team jerseys and their IP components, competitions and giveaways, as well as experts on hand demonstrating how genuine sports broadcasts and merchandise help develop and maintain quality sports leagues.

The IP Key SEA team joins Spanish football league, LaLiga, to mark World IP Day in Bangkok, Thailand, highlighting the important role that intellectual property plays in supporting sports leagues, clubs, players and facilities.  Trademarks and copyright, in particular, help protect the revenue from official merchandise and sports broadcasts, both of which are crucial to maintaining the quality of competition from LaLiga and other professional sports leagues.

IP Key SEA and EUIPO experts shared insights at the ‘Workshop on Trade in Counterfeit Food, Beverages, Cosmetics, and Fast Moving Consumer Goods’ in Ho Chi Minh City, Viet Nam, on 2-5 April. The workshop highlighted the prevalence of global trafficking in infringing fast-moving consumer goods (FMCGs) and its economic impact, as well as measures and technologies to address the problem.

The Project Management Board (PMB) of the IP Key Southeast Asia (SEA) Project adopted the Second Annual Work Plan (AWP2-2019) on 21 December 2018. AWP2-2019 of IP Key SEA covers an implementation period of 12 months, from 01 January to 31 December 2019, and consists of 25 activities, all contributing to the objectives of the action, which includes support to the negotiations and implementation of FTAs and the IP dialogue in Southeast Asian countries, enhancing the capacity of IP authorities, improving registration practices, and raising awareness on IP protection and enforcement. 

The IP Key SEA team contributed to the ‘Workshop on Trade in Counterfeit Food, Beverages, Cosmetics, and Fast Moving Consumer Goods’ in Ho Chi Minh City, Viet Nam, on 2-5 April. The workshop highlighted the prevalence of global trafficking in infringing fast-moving consumer goods (FMCGs) and its economic impact, as well as measures and technologies to address the problem.

IP Key SEA and EUIPO experts shared their insights during the event in a series of panel discussions covering laws and regulations, conducting investigations, deterrence measures and enforcement coordination.