13 January 2015PatentsNatalia Nogues

ASIPI review: A golden celebration

During the three-day event in Mexico City, the association brought together more than 850 leading specialists in intellectual property.

The night of Sunday, November 30 began with excitement and celebration. A gala event to celebrate the 50th anniversary honoured people including former presidents and founding members. The audience stood to recognise the achievements of César Guerrero Villagomez, Michael O’Farrell, Peter Dirk Siemsen and Guillermo Sesma, and those architects of the association who could not make it to the event.

ASIPI president Juan Vanrell related the history of the association and welcomed everyone to the event and to Mexico City. The executive committee was responsible for handing over the awards.

“National brands, the impact of IP in the telecoms market, genetic engineering and patent rights, and non-traditional marks were some issues raised by panellists.”

The next day, the work sessions and the administrative council meeting began. The opening ceremony of the work sessions was attended by leading authorities including Manuel Guerra, director general of the National Institute of Copyright, Miguel Angel Margain, director of the Mexican Institute of Industrial Property, and Arturo José García López Ancona, head of the Specialised Unit of Investigation against Copyright and Intellectual Property Crimes.

Mario Molina, who won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for Mexico in 1995, was the keynote speaker. Panellists then discussed topics such as IP as a human right, with the latter topic generating particular discussion.

On the second day, panellists discussed the influence of the Trans Pacific Partnership deal in the Americas, cultural expressions and protection mechanisms, how to create a successful trademark—which representatives of PepsiCo and Nestlé spoke about—and international trends in border measures.

During the meeting an important cooperation agreement between ASIPI and the International Trademark Association (INTA) was reached. It will promote a Latin American study on the trademark industry and undertake the organisation of conferences and seminars on educational projects. The agreement was signed by former INTA president Mei-Ian Stark and Etienne Sanz de Acedo, executive director of the association, and ASIPI president Vanrell. ASIPI also signed cooperation agreements with Origin, ITechLaw and John Marshall Law School.

The last of the work sessions stood out for their quality, emotion and attractiveness. National brands, the impact of IP in the telecoms market, genetic engineering and patent rights, and non-traditional marks were some issues raised by panellists.

Special guests, other associations, governing bodies of IP and national authorities supported the academic programme. Networking was, as always, part of the meeting.

At the finale, a Gala Dinner at the college of Vizcaínas, a performance by Julieta Venegas was the perfect ending to these successful work sessions and the celebration of the first 50 years of our association. But our work does not stop. We are already organising the next ASIPI seminar, to be held in Asunción, Paraguay, between March 15 and 17, where agriculture will be a central focus for analysis and debate. We look forward to seeing you there.

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7 December 2015   The Inter-American Intellectual Property Association has elected a new executive committee.