Mr Pierre Avedikian
Director of Publication
Principal Directorate for Patent Information
European Patent Office
Mr Pushpendra Rai
Director
World Intellectual Property Organization
Singapore Office
Distinguished speakers & colleagues
Ladies & gentlemen
1. Good morning and a warm welcome to everyone to the Europe-Asia Patent and Patent Information Conference – EAP2IC 2009.
2. I am very happy to be here once again to deliver the opening address. Events such as EAP2IC are appreciated not only for their rich content, but also for networking and learning opportunities. While I am pleased to see familiar faces at each EAP2IC, I am equally happy to see many participants who are attending their first conference. For me, and I am sure I speak for many in the audience as well, flagship events like EAP2IC are excellent opportunities to share experiences, exchange notes on best practices, and engage fellow professionals and experts in discussing the latest trends and developments in the international patent and patent information landscape.
3. I had the privilege of delivering the opening address at EAPIC 2007. But my association with the Conference dates back even further. I was present at the inaugural conference back in 2002, not as organizer, but as a speaker sharing my experience as an inventor and businessman. From my experience, I found that effective patent intelligence would have helped me uncover critical information pertaining to existing technologies and determining technological trends, amongst other things. At the commercial level, savvy usage of patent information can help businesses gain competitive advantage by targeting niche markets, monitoring competitors’ activities, following technology trends, sourcing for potential partners and investors, and identifying suitable licensing and franchising opportunities.
4. While these still hold true today, the ever expanding body of patent information continues to generate new demands for more effective and efficient tools and strategies to optimize patent information searches. At the risk of sounding cliché, patent documents contain a wealth of information, with over 70% of the patent literature and prior art captured in various scientific and technical databases not found or published anywhere else. This growing body of patent literature can be attributed to the increasing number of patent filings, and greater integration of IP management strategies in today’s business decisions.
5. Having seen EAP2IC entering its seventh year now, I am pleased to see the event enlarged and expanded, not just in scope and coverage of issues to include a greater focus on IP management, but in the involvement of more partners. As many of you may recall, earlier conferences were highly technical in nature. EAP2IC 2008 brought a business focus and commercial elements into the mix, culminating in this year’s theme, “Building Business Success with IP”, where we will look at patent information in relation to IP valuation, patent commercialization and monetization.
6. This approach has not been achieved at the expense of giving participants a more hands-on experience. You will also notice from the programme that we have devoted the whole of tomorrow to practical sessions focussing on patent specifications, search methodologies as well as patent information resources. We hope that this combination of presentations and workshops can help participants acquire a better knowledge on patent information while understanding its wider business implications and relevance.
7. This year, we also welcome the World Intellectual Property Organization onboard as our co-organizer. Over the years, WIPO has been an important partner in Singapore’s IP journey. Singapore and IPOS have benefited immensely from WIPO’s advice and assistance over the years. Today, WIPO and Singapore collaborate on a range of training activities to help other developing countries reap the benefits of IP for their own economic and social development. We are particularly thankful to WIPO for organizing the Singapore-WIPO Regional Patent Information Workshop back-to-back with EAP2IC 2009. This has provided the opportunity for patent officials from the Asia-Pacific region the opportunity to attend EAP2IC 2009. Not only has this allowed these officials to acquire a more holistic appreciation of the importance of patent information, their presence today has also given EAP2IC a truly Asian character.
8. Ladies and gentlemen, EAP2IC is a milestone in Asia-Europe IP cooperation. It has served as a concrete example of what Asia and Europe can achieve by leveraging on synergies, learning from each other’s experiences and taking advantage of opportunities in our respective regions. In fact, according to the EPO sources, over 50% of patent applications worldwide are written in Japanese, Chinese or Korea – a reflection of the growing importance of Asia’s participation in the international IP system.
9. On this note, I would like to take this opportunity to extend my warmest thanks to Mr Pierre Avedikian and the European Patent Office in partnering us to bring EAPIC into its seventh successful year. EAP2IC has evolved and grown from strength to strength. It is testimony to the excellent longstanding relationship between IPOS and the EPO, and of the EPO’s commitment to supporting the growth and development of IP in Asia. As host of EAP2IC, Singapore is committed to intensifying and expanding this cooperation with the EPO into other areas on the patent agenda in the near future.
10. I would also like to sincerely thank our sponsors – Lexis Nexis and Thomson Reuters – and our supporting organizations – the Association of Small and Medium Enterprises (ASME), the IP Academy of Singapore 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. Let me conclude by wishing everyone here a fruitful and productive EAP2IC 2009. Thank you very much.