Tom Duke: our man in Beijing
IP problems in China are costing British businesses tens of millions of pounds in profits every year, claims Tom Duke, senior IP liaison officer at the British embassy in Beijing. “It’s a serious problem, and certainly one we don’t take lightly.”
Part of the UK Intellectual Property Office (IPO) attaché network, which spans China, Brazil, Singapore and India, Duke knows first-hand the challenges British IP owners face in China.
His role divides into two parts, the first requiring him to lead all UK-China cooperation on IP policy. This includes “running policy projects”, he says, as well as “managing our bilateral relationship with different parts of the Chinese government”.
This relationship manifests in several ways, most notably through agreements on patents and designs with the State Intellectual Property Office (SIPO), on trademarks, with the State Administration of Industry and Commerce, and on copyright, with the National Copyright Administration of China.
“My role is then to determine and deliver annual work plans underneath these agreements,” says Duke.
For example, in December 2013, the IPO and SIPO signed an agreement called the Patent Prosecution Highway, which allows British businesses to obtain faster patent protection in China.
“There was lot of technical discussion between patent attorneys,” he explains, “but smoothing things over at a bilateral and political level is where I linked in.”
The second part of his job means Duke tries to ensure that British companies trading and investing in China have the information and support they need on IP matters. Liaising with UK Trade & Investment and other parts of the British government, Duke works closely with industry.
“Company cases, which are particular instances where companies have experienced difficulties protecting or enforcing IP in China, are important,” he says, and in the financial year 2013 (ending in March) he worked on 112 cases. By March 2014, that figure was set to be exceeded “comfortably”, he explains.
