WSO World IP Day Event: IP Offices Supporting SMEs

The WIPO Singapore Office’s (WSO) World IP Day webinar saw nearly 200 IP stakeholders from 30 countries join the session on Intellectual Property Offices Supporting Small to Medium Sized Enterprises.

The webinar showcased a range of views on the topic from the EUIPO, the Intellectual Property Office of Singapore, the International Trademark Association, the Association of SMEs (Singapore) and the IP-related Pandya Astagina Institute in Jakarta.

A myriad of crucially important points were raised by each speaker with some key outcomes being: the importance of overcoming cost barriers for SMEs to access the IP system; there is no “one-size-fits-all” solution because each IP office will have a different set of circumstances and a different business community to work with; sharing and learning from other IP offices is important; SMEs value simplicity and certainty to save them time; and taking a whole of government approach to building an IP culture amongst SMEs is beneficial.

The webinar was one of a multitude of events and online activities that WIPO and other IP organizations organized as part of the 2021 World IP Day which followed the theme IP & SMEs: Taking your ideas to market.

For more details visit the World IP Day website.