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Also, the matters contained in the following were written in accordance with the law, rules, and jurisprudence prevailing at the time of writing and posting, and do not include any future developments on the subject matter under discussion.
AT A GLANCE:
On July 8, 2024, the Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOPHL) issued Memorandum Circular (MC) No. 2024-025, to provide the terms and conditions of its Patent Protection Incentive for the Innovation and Technology Offices’ (ITSOs) program, to be known as “ITSO NICE IP”.
In the said MC, the IPOPHL reiterated that one of its flagship initiatives is the establishment of a network of ITSOs in strategic areas and institutions in the country with high potential for patent activity, usage of patent information, and commercialization of innovation to institutionalize and democratize the patent system and support Filipino technological innovations.
The ITSO NICE IP is in line with the IPOPHL’s objectives to further increase the quality of research and invention patent applications of ITSOs and to further encourage incentivize ITSOs in filing invention patent applications and mitigate the number of invention filings being converted to utility model due to lack of inventive step.
Salient Provisions of MC No. 2024-025
OBJECTIVES
The ITSO NICE IP aims to:
- Increase the quality of research outputs of ITSOs;
- Encourage and stimulate ITSOs to file invention patent applications; and
- Increase the quality of ITSO patent applications and mitigate the practice of filing an invention converted into a utility model.
* The objectives will be achieved by incentivizing ITSOs to submit patentable applications. ITSOs will be encouraged to file inventive applications, thereby enhancing research quality and motivating them to pursue invention patents. Applications deemed non-inventive or those with X and Y documents will be subject to standard fees, unlike those meeting program requirements. Additionally, DITTB will enhance capacity building through programs like Search and Drafting training to further support the ITSO NICE program objectives.
WAIVER OF FEES
- The ITSO NICE IP shall waive the following fees:
- Request for Substantive Examination (RSE) Fee provided that the Search Report released on the 18th-month publication will reveal that the invention is novel and inventive (No X and Y document)*;
- Second Publication Fee; and
- Issuance Fee
*The RSE shall only be waived if the invention is initially evaluated as novel and inventive during the establishment of the Search Report on the 18th-month publication. Otherwise, the RSE shall be paid fully by the ITSO applicant within six (6) months from the date of publication. In addition, the ITSO NICE applications are without prioritization and without prejudice to the result of the substantive examination. Note that only the RSE fees may be waived but applicants must still submit a RSE.
- All other fees shall be paid for by the Applicant.
- A beneficiary of the ITSO NICE IP cannot avail of any other program of the Bureau of Patents (BOP) as the YIPI, Scitecch, or Juana Invent Programs.
EFFECTIVITY PERIOD
The program shall run from 15 April 2024 to 30 April 2025 or until 100 patent applications have qualified for the incentive package, whichever comes later. However, it may be extended after review and assessment.
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Alburo Alburo and Associates Law Offices specializes in business law and labor law consulting. For inquiries regarding legal services, you may reach us at info@alburolaw.com, or dial us at (02)7745-4391/ 0917-5772207/ 09778050020.
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