International Activities

JIPA License Committee visits Singapore & Thailand

The License Committee sent its investigative team to Singapore and Thailand from February 18 to 22, 2013. They visited 13 institutions listed below in order to: 1) interview their officers to clarify the actual condition of their legal systems and their operation in ASEAN countries, 2) identify matters that need to be considered when Japanese businesses enter into agreements with companies and other organizations in the region, and 3) fulfill other objectives.

• Singapore
  Law firms
  Baker & McKenzie, ATMD Bird & Bird, and Drew & Napier
  Public organizations and other agencies
  IPI Singapore, Singapore’s Ministry of Law, Singapore International Arbitration Centre, and WIPO Arbitration and Mediation Center
• Thailand
  Law firms and patent offices
  S&I International, Tilleke & Gibbins, Miyake & Yamazaki, and Masuvalley & Partners
  Public organizations and other agencies
  Thailand National Science and Technology Development Agency and JETRO Bangkok

At the law firms and patent offices, the members exchanged opinions based on JIPA’s up front questions. Subjects are as follow: legal systems related to technical license agreements in ASEAN countries; systems for registering license agreements; and matters that need to be considered when concluding agreements with local businesses. Commission members could obtain information that is useful to their actual business.

Officers from public organizations and other agencies in Singapore explained about the “IP Hub in Asia” which is promoted by the country’s government. The commission members learned about Singapore’s strategy for becoming an IP hub in the ASEAN region.

At the public organizations and other agencies in Thailand, commission members were briefed on case studies involving technology transfer and policies for handling intellectual property. Through these meetings, the commission members were gain an understanding of the actual conditions involving technology transfer by Thai government agencies.

Recently, Japanese businesses have been proactively expanding into emerging markets, including ASEAN countries, and have developed business in such markets. However, the fact remains that many Japanese companies do not have sufficient information concerning ASEAN nations’ legal systems, their procedures for technical license agreements, and other aspects of technical licensing in those countries. On the other hand, commission members received tremendous cooperation from the organizations they visited. Not only they were able to freely exchange ideas at these organizations, but also they were able to obtain detailed answers to the questions they asked in advance.

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