On June 29, 2020 the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) and the Eurasian Patent Office (EAPO) organized a videoconference “Modern trends and problems of IP commercialization in the Caucasus, Central Asia and Eastern Europe”.

The event was attended by heads of national IP offices of the Eurasian Patent Convention (EAPC) Contracting States, representatives of technology parks, business incubators, innovation centers and other institutions of the innovation-support systems (hereinafter – technoparks).

Opening remarks were made by Saule Tlevlessova, President of the EAPO, and Michal Svantner, Director of the WIPO Department for Transition and Developed Countries (TDC).

President Tlevlessova welcomed the launch of a direct dialogue with technoparks of the countries of the Eurasian region, highlighting their role in the development of science-intensive, high-tech industries.

As EAPO President noted, startups and other innovation companies, investing significant financial and human resources in the development of innovative technologies, do not always pay proper attention to the legal protection of their products and do not take into account the relevant risks. At the same time, inappropriate choice of the strategy of IP rights protection may not only lead to their loss, but also negatively affect the interest for a potential investor or a business partner.

Encouraging technoparks to provide maximum assistance to resident companies in timely registration of their IP rights, EAPO President recalled the high indicators of innovation activity in the USSR, when in-house patent services identified and patented prospective technologies at the earliest stages.

Referring to a notion of major difficulty to patent IT-solutions, Saule Tlevlessova spoke about the dynamic growth of regional and national IP systems, which allow to patent computer-implemented inventions, including those based on blockchain technology, and noted that EAPO is ready to examine applications for these subject matters.

In the following presentation the EAPO specialists introduced to the audience the advantages, which the Eurasian patent system provides to innovation companies from EAPC Contracting States, the unified nature of the Eurasian patent and the unified procedure of its granting, the timeliness of Eurasian examination procedure, relevant for startups, working in the field of information and communication technologies, the peculiarities of drafting and examination of such applications.

The participants of the conference shared the experience of creating and developing technoparks, discussed the associated problems, exchanged information on the results of cooperation between national IP offices and technoparks.

Summing up the meeting, Saule Tlevlessova drew attention to the upcoming completion of state programs and strategies in the field of intellectual property in some countries of the region this year. EAPO President suggested that the new documents under preparation should pay more attention to IP commercialization and, noting the active participation of WIPO in the development of national strategies, expressed readiness of the EAPO as a regional office to provide expert assistance in this area.

While appreciating WIPO’s initiative of holding the meeting and noting its importance and timeliness, the President of the EAPO supported the views expressed during the discussion on the necessity to continue the dialogue with technoparks of the countries of the Eurasian region and to give it more practical orientation.