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FOREIGN
companies are still the ones are taking advantage of
patent protection in the country due to the lack of
awareness on the intellectual property system among
Filipinos.
Adrian
Cristobal Jr., director general of the Intellectual
Property Office of the Philippines (IP Phils.), said
records from the agency show that about 97 percent of
patents applied for and granted in the country belong to
foreign applicants, and only about 3 percent are owned
by Filipinos.
“One
factor that hinders patenting is the lack of knowledge
and understanding of the IP system, specifically the
patent application processes,” Cristobal said.
With
this, Cristobal said IP Phils. put together a
three-year strategic plan to institute patent reform
programs which aspire to improve the patent practice and
administration in the country.
A part
of this is the Patent Agent Qualifying Examination (PAQE),
which is an annual examination given to individuals
seeking professional careers in patent agency. PAQE, a
major program of IP Phils. is supported by the European
Patent Office and the EC-Asean Intellectual Property
Right Co-operation Program.
“IP
Phils. institutionalized the exam process to
professionalize the patent-agency practice in the
Philippines. We need to establish a cadre of patent
agents who have the appropriate technical and science
disciplines to assist our inventors in patenting their
creations,” he said.
Majority
of the examinees of this year’s PAQE are from
government-funded research institutions such as the
Department of Science and Technology and the Department
of Agriculture. Law firms also sent their IP lawyers to
take the exam.
Prior to
taking the PAQE, all candidates should finish a
prerequisite five-day patent drafting workshop with IP
Phils.’ Intellectual Property Research and Training
Institute (IPRTI).
“IPRTI
seminars and workshops this year are geared to train
potential candidates such as IP lawyers, patent agents
and inventors from public and private research
institutions to develop their skills in effective patent
application,” said IPRTI Director Celia
Torres-Villanueva.
Among
the IPRTI courses offered were on Patents and
Patentability, Introduction to Patent Drafting and
Chemistry and Engineering Courses for IP Lawyers, a
short course for IP lawyers without science or
engineering backgrounds.
Patent
agents are professionals who assist those who file
patent applications with IP Philippines.
Examinees may either choose the chemistry exam or the
non-chemistry exam (which focuses on mechanical and
electrical engineering).
Patent
reform, where programs of the IPRTI fall under, is among
the policy areas in Philippine IP strategy, which also
covers public health; universities and research and
development institutions; biodiversity and genetic
resources; indigenous knowledge, systems and practices,
folklore and geographic indications; small and medium
enterprises; and institutional capacity building and IP
enforcement. --M.V. de Leon |
