Category Archives: South-East Asia IP Protection

IP Considerations for the Manufacturing Industry in South-East Asia

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cool20080814_015In today’s blog post we are looking into how to protect IP in the manufacturing industry in South-East Asia, which is currently offering many opportunities for the European SMEs. You’ll learn more about patent protection and industrial design protection, but also about brand protection, as your brand is equally important to your patent. 

Manufacturing is one of the key drivers of growth in South-East Asia, with more and more South-East Asian countries winning manufacturers over from China due to lower labour costs, rising domestic consumption and improving infrastructure. Well-known brands such as Coca-Cola and Coach have so far established plants in Myanmar and Vietnam, leveraging on the cheap labour market and growing domestic demand in these countries. In Cambodia, the textiles and footwear manufacturing industry alone generates approximately EUR 5 billion annually for the economy.

In the coming years, it is expected that the manufacturing industry in South-East Asia will continue to stay strong and even expand further. The expansion of the working-age population in South-East Asia will help to boost the manufacturing sector of these countries and keep the labour costs low. The transfer of technology into South-East Asia over time will also serve to increase the efficiency of countries in this region. As such, South-East Asia offers vast opportunities for EU SMEs that are looking to expand their presence in the region. In so doing, however, EU SMEs should be aware of the intellectual property risks that they will face when operating in this region, with respect to the advanced technology that may be transferred to this region as part of the collaboration and joint venture with SME’s local partners.
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Cambodia applied online Registration System for Trade Marks

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shutterstock_152628707Good news for all the European SMEs wishing to do business in Cambodia, it is now possible to file trade mark registration applications online. Today’s blog post has been kindly shared with us by our South-East Asia IPR SME Helpdesk external expert Mr. Nguyen Hoa Binh from Daitin & Associates. In this blog post Mr. Nguyen Hoa Binh explains the new online application process in more detail. 

On 25 May 2017, the Ministry of Commerce in Cambodia launched online trade mark filing system.

The new launched online filing system allow Applicant to file applications to register their trade marks online.

Accordingly, Applicants can upload the required documents and information through the online trade mark filing system.

The trademark applicant can also conduct preliminary trademark search from the Cambodia Department of Intellectual Property database.

Under the Prakas (Regulation) issued by the Ministry of Commerce on May 4, 2017, an applicant with permanent residence or principal place of business inside Cambodia can use this system.

The applicant has to request in writing to the DIP for a user name and password. For foreign applicants, the system can only be used through a registered Cambodian trademark agent.

Once the trademark application has been filed, when the applicant is represented by an agent, the original, notarized power of attorney, along with any priority documents, must be submitted in hard copy to the Department of Intellectual Property within two months from the filing date. Continue reading “Cambodia applied online Registration System for Trade Marks” »

IP Considerations in the Medical Device & Healthcare Industry in South-East Asia

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the-device-1822457_1920In today’s blog post we are discussing how to best protect your IP in the medical device and healthcare sector in South-East Asia. You will learn more about patent protection, design protection and trade mark protection in this industry. Since medical device and healthcare industry is very R&D intensive, we are also discussing how to protect your IP while conducting R&D activities in South-East Asia.  

Rapid demographic changes and health reforms within South-East Asia are expected to create enormous demands in the health care market in the near future. Growth in average annual healthcare expenditure between 2014-18 is expected to be around 11% of GDP in ASEAN – but with highly varied rates among the countries: Vietnam with the highest at 6.6% and Myanmar with the lowest at 1.8%.[1] At the same time, amongst many South-East Asia countries, local pharmaceuticals are not well trusted, making way for foreign players with strong brands to establish significant market share in South-East Asia. This offers many promising business opportunities for the European SMEs engaged in medical device and healthcare industries, as European brands with high and positive brand recognition are expected to be favored by local governments and clinicians over their lesser-known competitors.

The healthcare industry in South-East Asia also serves a rapidly growing medical tourism industry which is expanding globally at a rate of about 25% and it is claimed that nearly a third of all medical tourists in the world receive medical attention in South-East Asia[2]. Furthermore, many South-East Asian countries like Thailand and Singapore aspire to become the medical and healthcare hubs in the region, offering various opportunities for the European SMEs.

Even though, IP laws and regulations have improved a lot in South-East Asia over the past five years, counterfeiting and other IP violations are still commonplace in the region. EU SMEs would therefore benefit from understanding the different intellectual property rights that are relevant to the medical device & healthcare industry and determine the effective way to protect their IP rights in South-East Asia. Continue reading “IP Considerations in the Medical Device & Healthcare Industry in South-East Asia” »

How to Remove Counterfeit Goods from E-Commerce Sites in South-East Asia

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2. Credit CardE-commerce has also been growing in South-East Asia and it’s attracting many European Companies. Together with the growth of e-commerce, the presence of counterfeit goods on these e-commerce sites has also been growing. In today’s blog post we are discussing how to remove counterfeits from the major e-commerce sites like Lazada in South-East Asia. 

A growing middle class coupled with increasing internet access has led to fast-paced e-commerce growth in South-East Asia in the past decades. The middle-class population of ASEAN, according to expert estimates, may grow from 190 million in 2012 to 400 million in 2020[1] . Additionally, there are approximately 200 million people in South-East Asia with access to the internet and this number is expected to grow three-fold by 2025. E-commerce in South-East Asia can thus offer many promising business opportunities for the European SMEs.

Besides being a forum for legitimate vendors and original products, the internet is also used by unscrupulous businesses as a platform for the distribution of counterfeit goods which infringe intellectual property rights of others. The explosive growth in access to the internet has resulted in counterfeiters to move their illegal activities online. Online e-commerce websites might become easy and anonymous options for counterfeiters to reach out to potential customers as well as popular social media platforms. A recent study reported that 20% of 750,000 posts on the popular social media platform Instagram alone in relation to well-known fashion brands involved the offer of counterfeit products for sales, with many of the vendors identified to be based in China, Malaysia and Indonesia among others[2]. Continue reading “How to Remove Counterfeit Goods from E-Commerce Sites in South-East Asia” »

Software Protection in South-East Asia

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close-up-2178341_1920In today’s blog post we are discussing how to protect your software IP rights in South-East Asia, where ICT and software sector has been booming in recent years, offering many promising opportunities to European SMEs. This article takes a closer look at the source code protection with copyrights, patent protection for software related inventions and discusses how to safely licence your software in South-East Asia. 

The Information Technology services and software sector in South-East Asia have been booming in recent years as South-East Asian nations continue to develop through many innovative technological solutions. In particular, South-East Asia is experiencing a rapid growth of Internet, digital and social media and mobile activities. With more than 320 million Internet users in 2017, increasing connectivity and therefore dependence on computer technology is to be expected in this region. This translates to growth in the software industry which leads to many promising opportunities for the European SMEs in the region, whose top-notch technology and know-how will be sought after.

Before entering South-East Asian markets, however, EU SMEs should be aware of the different IP rights and how they apply to the software industry, as well as the possible risk of IP infringement in these markets. This is increasingly important with many companies developing their own software, and software development being an ever-growing industry. European SMEs should thus have a comprehensive IP strategy in place when entering the promising markets of South-East Asia. Continue reading “Software Protection in South-East Asia” »