IPOPHL seeks changes in innovation hub framework
Patent inventions are government-issued grants given to a product, process or the improvement of a product or process which meets the IPOPHL’s criteria on novelty, inventive step and industrial applicability
The Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOPHL) is upgrading its partnership with its Innovation and Technology Support Office (ITSO) partners through reforms expected to boost the hubs’ capacity to facilitate innovation.
ITSO are technology and innovation support centers based in universities, colleges and other higher educational institutions as well as research and development (R&D) institutions. There are currently 85 ITSO nationwide established by the IPOPHL.
According to the IPOPHL, the tweaking of the ITSO framework’s guidelines and objectives “will position these innovation hubs to make more profound shifts toward developments in line with the rapid technological advancements in the Fourth Industrial Revolution.”
Among the changes being proposed is the adjustment of the accreditation point system to encourage innovators to file for patent inventions instead of utility models (UM).
The IPOPHL said UM are minor patent inventions with shorter protection term of seven years from the date of its filing as an intellectual property.
On the other hand, patent inventions are government-issued grants given to a product, process or the improvement of a product or process which meets the IPOPHL’s criteria on novelty, inventive step and industrial applicability. Patent inventions are also protected for 20 years from the filing.
Patents are a vital component in measuring R&D output, an area which the country seeks to revitalize under the Philippine Development Plan 2017-2022.
Still, the plan also notes that many universities lack the expertise to market their patents for commercial use, IPOPHL said, hence the proposed amendments.
“Our country had been dubbed an innovation achiever but we will not stop at that; we need to do more. The lives of millions of Filipinos are at stake here. That’s why the government is intensifying its support in R&D and technology transfer, and ITSO will be a crucial part in making genuine innovations happen,” IPOPHL director general Josephine Santiago said in a statement.
Other proposed adjustments to the framework includes “more careful” vetting process for the acceptance of institutions applying to have ITSO, an incentive system for excelling ITSO, a record of IP experts excelling in certain types of services and the submission of a semi-annual monitoring report tracking the ITSO progress.
The recalibration will be presented to accreditation bodies such as the Commission on Higher Education, Department of Budget and Management, Accrediting Agency of Chartered Colleges & Universities in the Philippines and the Association of Local Colleges & Universities Commission on Accreditation.