Mr Curt Edfjaell
Vice-President
European Patent Office
Distinguished speakers & colleagues
Ladies & gentlemen
1. It is with great pleasure that I welcome you once again to the Europe-Asia Patent and Patent Information Conference – EAP²IC 2008.
2. As you may have noticed, we have renamed the event this year. While EAPIC has been an important platform in encouraging companies to recognize the salience of patent information, we believe that it is timely to elevate it to the next level. Evident in the theme of this Conference – “Putting IP and Information Assets to Work - the focus this year is to bring greater attention and technical understanding to patent information applications in business strategies, and the value it brings to IP management in an organization.
3. Since the inaugural conference in 2002, EAPIC has strived to foster greater industry awareness and interaction amongst the IP, research and business communities. EAPIC has provided opportunities to exchange new ideas, share developments and updates, and explore the possibilities of patent information for value creation. As host country, Singapore is committed to intensifying and expanding this important dialogue, and to facilitate collaboration and knowledge exchange.
4. With over 40 million patents published worldwide, there is a wealth of patent information available to the public today. Covering virtually every field of technology, patent documents present a treasure trove of detailed technical, business and legal information. As some sources claim, 70% of information disclosed in patents is not found elsewhere.
5. As many of you are already aware, patent information is useful in forecasting and identifying prevailing technological trends in specific fields, helping companies avoid unnecessary expenses in researching what is already known. At the same time, information gathered can also be used to assess the appropriate technology for technology transfer, and to help identify alternative technologies. From a commercial viewpoint, effective usage of patent information can help businesses target niche markets, monitor the activities of competitors, locate potential partners and investors, as well as identify licensing and franchising opportunities.
6. For businesses in innovation-intensive sectors, the ability to extract and analyze relevant information contained in patent literature is critical in helping a company create business leverage and develop appropriate IP strategies to meaningfully support its business plans. While it opens up new opportunities for inventors, businesses, IP professionals and other stakeholders, the challenge is to sift through the plethora of information found in various patent databases and use it to gain a competitive edge for your business in the world of ever-increasing competition.
7. Over the next two days, you will have the opportunity to meet, network and share experiences, learn best practices and discuss with thought leaders and industry experts the latest tools and strategies in optimizing the use of patent information.
8. Beyond this, I would like to stress that EAP²IC is a good example of a win-win collaborative partnership between two important regions – Asia and Europe. The Asian IP landscape is dynamic and evolving rapidly. Today, Asia’s participation in the international patent system has registered a quantum leap. In recent years, patent application growth rates in Asia have outpaced aggregate worldwide growth. As economies move towards knowledge-intensive industries with greater emphasis on innovation, creativity and specialized expertise, there is a growing awareness in Asia of the need to incorporate IP management in business strategies. On the other hand, Europe’s successful experience in technological innovation and advanced IP capabilities makes it well positioned to take advantage of opportunities in Asia. In short, there is scope for Asia to learn from Europe, and much for Europe to gain from opportunities in an emergent Asia. Continued cooperation in IP can only benefit both regions.
9. On this note, I would like to take this opportunity to extend my warmest thanks to Mr Curt Edfjaell and the European Patent Office in partnering us to bring EAP²IC into its sixth successful year. The success of EAP²IC is testimony to the excellent longstanding relationship between IPOS and the EPO, and I look forward to stepping up our close collaboration in the years ahead.
10. I would also like to sincerely thank our supporting organizations - International Association for the Protection of Intellectual Property (AIPPI), Asian Patent Attorneys’ Association (APAA), Association of Singapore Patent Agents (ASPA), Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), National University of Singapore (NUS) and SPRING Singapore – for their support, contribution and efforts in bringing IP professionals, industry representatives, the academia and other important stakeholders to this important event.
11. At the opening of EAPIC 2005, I had expressed the hope that the EAPIC series could continue to serve as “an effective interface between national IP offices, industry and IP professionals as it is only through continued close association and regular updates, that common interests could dovetail, resulting in collaborations to ensure efficient use of resources for mutual benefit”.
12. I sincerely believe that this is all the more relevant today. For IPOS and Singapore, landmark events like EAP²IC continue to provide industry leaders, technical experts and government representatives with opportunities to contribute to the rich discourse on topical IP issues and exchange ideas on how to bring businesses to the next level in IP management. On this note, let me conclude by wishing everyone here a fruitful and productive conference.
13. Thank you very much.