IP Office Heads Meet in Singapore, WIPO Participates in Singapore’s IP Week

August 28, 2019

Cross-border information sharing is crucial for successful international collaboration on intellectual property (IP) issues, which promotes the worldwide spread of innovation, said WIPO Assistant Director General and Chief of Staff Naresh Prasad in opening the Heads of Intellectual Property Office Conference (HIPOC) for countries in South Asia, Southeast Asia, the Islamic Republic of Iran and Mongolia.

“The Asian region has emerged as the most dynamic in terms of innovation as is borne out by the IP filings from the region in recent years as well as the Global Innovation Index,” said Mr. Prasad, who opened the Aug. 26-29, 2019, meeting with Chief Executive of the Intellectual Property Office of Singapore (IPOS) Daren Tang.

Mr. Prasad added that “the HIPOC offers an excellent forum for Heads of IP offices from the region to exchange their experiences in order to ensure that IP offices in the region function in an even more efficient and productive manner and in keeping with ever-growing demands for their services.”

Mr. Prasad thanked Singapore for hosting the conference and the participants from 18 countries for their attendance, which he said was key to fostering a strong collaborative spirit.

Mr. Tang highlighted the growing significance of the Asian region in the global innovation ecosystem as he outlined the emerging role of IP offices as innovation agencies.  He outlined IPOS’s work in developing as an international center of excellence for intangible assets, anchoring Singapore as a hub for global innovation flows.

The 7th HIPOC, organized by the Government of Singapore and WIPO, was the second of three joint events planned for 2019, following a successful regional seminar for the Asia and Pacific Group on libraries, archives, museums, and educational and research institutions held in April.

The HIPOC event formed part of IP Week@SG, an annual celebration of IP that brings to Singapore nearly 4,000 IP stakeholders from more than 40 countries.

The centerpiece of IP Week, the Global Forum on IP (GFIP), was opened by Singapore’s Minister for Trade and Industry Chan Chun Sing.  A key feature of the GFIP was the presentation of the WIPO – IPOS Awards by the Minister and Mr. Prasad.

Now in its 7th year, the WIPO - IPOS IP Awards recognize companies that have achieved outstanding enterprise growth through the successful use of their IP.  The 2019 edition saw more than 25 companies submit nominations across three award categories: The IPOS Award for IP Champions (x3), the WIPO Users’ Trophy and the WIPO IP Enterprise Trophy.  An independent panel of judges assessed the nominations on their IP portfolio, the company's business strategy and commercialization effort to leverage their IP and the impact of the IP on stakeholders, the respective industry and society.

The GFIP Plenary sessions featured presentations from Mr. Tang, INTA President David Lossignol, ARIPO Director General Fernando Dos Santos, CEO UK IP Office Tim Moss, and Ambassador Tan Hung Seng, Permanent Representative of Singapore to WIPO and the WTO.  A common theme of the presentations were the value of collaboration amongst innovation hubs, the importance of multilateralism and the key role played by WIPO, and the WIPO Singapore Office in particular, in this respect.

While in Singapore, Mr. Prasad also met with a number of high-level officials culminating in a bilateral meeting with Mr. Tang.  Their wide-ranging discussion touched upon the excellent relationship between WIPO and IPOS, the importance of the work of the WIPO Singapore Office and ways to deepen the relationship between WIPO and Singapore.