Raising the profile of IP

Habip Asan, president and chairman of the Turkish Patent Institute (TPI), says that the awareness of intellectual property in Turkey is still not high enough.

The TPI, which is due to be renamed the Turkish Patent and Trademark Authority this year, plays a vital role in making sure the awareness of IP keeps improving. Through different approaches, the TPI has already increased the number of IP applicants and the organisation is also looking to become more involved in the international arena of IP.

“The TPI not only processes applications and grants rights but also disseminates knowledge and information,” says Asan.

“In this regard, the TPI with its given task has an important role in the national innovation system of Turkey.”

As expressed by Asan, the TPI strives to increase the awareness of IP rights in Turkey which, he believes, is “still not at a desired level”.

To address the problem, the TPI has tasked one of its departments to increase the visibility of the institution by organising seminars, training sessions and workshops in almost every part of Turkey throughout the year.

In addition, the TPI has plans to start its very own IP Academy in cooperation with the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) this year, for examiners, IP agents and attorneys. This, Asan stresses, is also a contribution to the innovation system in Turkey.

Prospects

The awareness of IP in Turkey may be not high enough, but 2015 was a year of success for the TPI and the institution is looking at 2016 optimistically.

“Last year, our heavy agenda contained remarkable international events, achievements and start-ups which will, I assume, enhance Turkey’s IP structure and skyrocket its place at the international arena within the coming years,” says Asan.

The TPI is aiming higher this year as it is planning to make an application for appointment as an international searching authority (ISA) and international preliminary examining authority (IPEA) under the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT).

“We are making considerable and thorough efforts to fulfil all the criteria necessary for being an ISA and IPEA. I will be very glad if we could reach our goal this year.

“The TPI has initiated a remarkably intensive negotiation process, in cooperation with all relevant national stakeholders,” he explains.

Although the TPI has been striving for improvement, the quality and effectiveness of its patent services has been a vital issue for Turkey’s national investors and entrepreneurs, says Asan.

To address this, the TPI has also initiated a bid to host WIPO’s new external office, which would further improve the quality of its patent services. WIPO currently has a network of five external offices in Beijing, Tokyo, Rio de Janeiro, Moscow and Singapore.

“To be part of this network is very important because external offices allow member states to access WIPO’s services more conveniently and provide a good means to establish closer cooperation with WIPO and their neighbouring countries.”

Asan explains that the external offices also enhance the status of the host country by creating effective and tailor-made systems which will take into consideration the specific needs and priorities of the host country, as well as its region.

“We think that Turkey is one step ahead of the other options and we will continue to emphasise our advantages on every occasion in order to benefit from this opportunity, which should also be considered a reflection of our proactive IP policies,” he adds.

Updating legislation

When discussing the challenges that the TPI faces, Asan says that the organisation needs to focus on the adoption process of the new Turkish IP legislation.

“We pay careful attention to harmonisation with the relevant EU laws, while keeping in mind concerns and benefits of our local inventors and entrepreneurs.”

Further, Asan says, there have been negotiations on updating the current Customs Union with the EU.

“We presume that despite the fact that our national legislation is almost in line with the acquis communautaire (the accumulated body of EU law since 1958), IP rights may be included in the negotiation process with regard to some aspects. Our office will be involved in this process, especially relating to its duties,” he says.

Various reports have suggested that counterfeits have been a problem in Turkey but Asan disagrees with some of their contents.

“Such reports contain very broad and vague statements for Turkey and for most of the allegations no source is indicated, so it gives the impression of having a lack of objective judgements. The ever-growing number of applications and utilisation of the TPI’s registration services indicate an IP environment trusted by the rights holders.”

“We pay careful attention to harmonisation with the relevant EU laws, while keeping in mind concerns and benefits of our local inventors and entrepreneurs.”

He adds: “The TPI has been established by the Law No. 5000 in which its duties and responsibilities have been regulated. The institution has been given a critical role in promoting and encouraging industrial property rights through maintaining the widespread use and securing proper implementation of these rights in Turkey.”

As explained by Asan, IP rights are mainly enforced by the specialised IP courts, Ministry of Customs and Trade, Ministry of Internal Affairs (including police forces), and the relevant laws and implementing regulations in Turkey.

“Even though the enforcement of rights is not directly under the responsibility of the TPI, the TPI has been implementing the related Decree Laws through its bodies such as Opposition Divisions and Reexamination and Appeal Boards for patents, trademarks and industrial designs and so contributes to the proper enforcement of industrial property rights in Turkey,” he says.

There will be further legislative changes in Turkey with the Industrial Property Code (IPC) this year. The IPC will change the TPI in certain ways such as allowing it to assess non-traditional trademarks, bringing in a shortened opposition time for trademarks (three months down to two), and introducing a six-month post-grant opposition period for patents.

IP by numbers

Although the TPI is facing some challenges, its work on developing IP in Turkey has been paying off.

In terms of domestic patent filings, the number in 2015 increased by 13% compared to 2014. Along with this, in terms of foreign patent filings, the figure last year increased by 12% over the previous year.

In the years 2011, 2012, 2014 and 2015, the rate of increase in domestic patent applications was 25%, 11%, 7%, and 13%, respectively. 2013 was the only year when the number of applications decreased very slightly, at a rate of just 0.33%. Asan defends the fall in 2013, saying that the number dropped by just 15 applications.

Trademarks are the most commonly filed form of IP in Turkey. In 2015, the number of the applications was 110,679. Patent applications have doubled since 2008, reaching around 14,000 at the end of 2015. Design applications have increased by 35% since 2008, from 29,954 to 40,206.

According to WIPO’s “World Intellectual Property Indicators”, which came out in December 2015, compared to the rest of the world Turkey takes 24th place for patent applications, counting both international and domestic applications, seventh place for utility model applications, and 15th place for national patent applications.

The biggest domestic filer of patents in Turkey in 2014 was Arçelik, a Turkish company engaging in the production and marketing of household appliances. The biggest foreign patent filer is Philips.

“Among applications for trademarks from Turkish-based companies, food and retail are the top ranking sectors that apply for trademarks; for foreign companies food and cosmetics companies are in the top rankings,” Asan says.

According to figures from 2014, the biggest domestic filer of trademarks was retailer Bim, which had 126 applications registered with the TPI, while Unilever was the highest foreign trademark filer with 111 applications.

Asan elaborates on the success of Turkey in the area of IP since he was elected president of the TPI in 2009.

“The economy of Turkey during this time has been going well. There are many reflections of this development, one of which is the increase in the number of applications for industrial property rights.”

He explains that IP developments in the country are constantly growing, and describes the TPI as the “main engine of the industrial property system in Turkey”.

“In order to make sure that the institution works efficiently, the TPI has taken necessary steps to improve its work. The TPI continually recruits new patent and trademark examiners and makes sure that it renews and strengthens its physical and IT infrastructure for accurate and timely results for its customers,” he concludes.

With all the work the office is undertaking, maybe 2016 will be the year that the TPI achieves higher public awareness of IP and strengthens the system in Turkey to the benefit of all stakeholders.