International Activities
Participation at the 21st Session of the WIPO-SCP, Switzerland
The SCP was created in 1998 to serve as a forum to discuss issues, facilitate coordination, and provide guidance concerning the progressive international development of patent law. Representatives of various countries' governmental organizations and non-governmental organizations participated in the SPC sessions, held almost annually, as its members and observers, respectively. JIPA is an official observer with the right to speak.
The 21st session could be described as a productive one. The participants were engaged in rather realistic discussions, and observers including JIPA were given more time than before to participate in the discussions. In collaboration with International Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers & Associations (IFPMA), another observer, and the delegation from the Japanese government, JIPA stated its opinions on one of the specific themes of the agenda, "Patents and Health," summarized as follows: "Japanese medicinal and biotechnology companies with sincerity respond to and negotiate on the requests they receive for licensing their patents, and grant licenses or transfer their technologies"; "in order to create and release a new drug, R&D investment is essential and patents are necessary for this purpose; "JIPA hopes that Japanese companies' engagement in activities in dealing with neglected diseases and their participation in the WIPO Re: Search project will be put up for discussion in the future"; and "JIPA declares its support for the IFPMA, which was opposed to the disclosure of international nonproprietary names (INN) in patent applications."
JIPA achieved a significant outcome by participating in this session as it had an opportunity to collaborate with the Japan Patent Office, the Japan Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Association (JPMA) and other related parties in the process of drafting its statement. Meanwhile, JIPA will pay adequate attention to the developments in discussions at the SPC sessions in the future.
