Problems relating to Trade and Investment on ASEAN

17. Implementation of intellectual property rights ("IPRs")
Issue	Issue details	Requests	Reference

(1) Delays in Patent Examination and Variances of Examiners' Quality Level	- While legislative preparation has made a fair progress in the ASEAN member states, side by side with the economic growth, patent applications have snowballed rapidly. The delays in examination and qualitative variances have become noticeable by examiners (judgement variation and their expertise level). It affects applicants' effort to seek stable protection of their patent rights, and other IPRs.	- It is requested that ASEAN member states will promote inter-member states cooperation through enhanced use of "Patent Protection Highways" and ASEAN Patent Examination Co-operation (ASPEC), and dissolve the backlog of examination, while upgrading quality of examiners by providing adequate training, etc.
	(Action) - From 30 June to 3 July 2014, the 44th ASEAN Working Group on Intellectual Property Cooperation (AWGIPC) reviewed the region by region state of progress on each initiative under strategic target set forth in "ASEAN IPR Action Plan 2011-2015". 5-strategic targets under ASEAN IPR Action Plan 2011-2015: (1) Establishment of well balanced IPRs scheme, (2) Member states' participation in the International IPRs scheme through overhaul in individual member states' regional, legal, policy formulation, institutional foundation building. (3) Propulsion of IPRs creation, exploitation, enlightenment, and transfer of technology, (4) Positive participation in the international IPRs community, (5) Enhancement of cooperative partnership relations among the member states for personal/organisational improvement in the ASEAN IPRs authorities. - On 27 March 2014, "ASEAN and Europe Strengthen Cooperation on Patents".
	(Improvement) - Japan Patent Office provides at its web page (https://www.jpo.go.jp/torikumi/kokusai/kokusai2/prus.htm) "PRUS: Patent examination Result Utilisation Scheme" that enables expeditious and accurate patent acquisition in the ASEAN Member States through utilisation of the results of foreign patent examinations such as "Modified Substantive Examination" and "Early Examination based on Examination in Foreign Countries".

(2) Indigested Data Base related to IPRs Information	- It is difficult to grasp accurately the risk from patents of others in the up-and-coming countries with growing needs for securing patent rights, due to shortage of information on statistics and the database for pending applications.	- It is requested that each ASEAN member state will further advance cooperation with patent offices of developed countries and streamline the IPRs database as soon as possible.
	(Improvement) - Japan Patent Office at its web site sets forth: (1) Information on "Intellectual Property Right Scheme/Information on IPRs in Foreign Countries" (https://www.jpo.go.jp/seido/kokusai_doukou/sangyozaisan/index.html), and (2) "Data Bank for Information on IPRs in Emerging States" (https://www.globalipdb.inpit.go.jp/), providing information on Intellectual Property Right Scheme in each ASEAN Member State and Emerging Countries.

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