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17 July 2020

IP is key to beating pandemic, say IP5 members

The European, Korean, and Japanese patent offices have said collaboration between IP authorities will be key to defeating COVID-19.

The remarks came in joint statements published today, June 17, by the European Patent Office (EPO) with its IP5 partners, the  Japan Patent Office (JPO) and the  Korean Intellectual Property Office (KIPO).

IP5 is a group of the world’s five biggest patent offices, and also includes the US Patent and Trademark Office and the Chinese National Intellectual Property Administration.

“The EPO and the KIPO firmly believe that innovation is the key to putting an end to the coronavirus pandemic and rebuilding the global economy and trade,” one of the statements said.

The JPO, meanwhile, pledged to “continue to support [researchers’] efforts in developing technological solutions to this global challenge by offering access to patent information on technologies, through our free public patent databases”.

Each statement affirmed the importance of IP to fostering the innovation that IP5 believe will be key to finding definitive solutions to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The message comes amid debates over compulsory licensing and the exclusivity rewards enjoyed by pharmaceutical companies.

Speaking to  LSPN Connect earlier this week, UK Intellectual Property Office CEO Tim Moss acknowledged the “theoretical risk” that IP could be used to restrict access to key technologies.

But this has not happened so far, he argued: “What we’re seeing in practice is some amazing collaborations ... it’s fantastic to see how the IP regime has responded to the pandemic.”

Moss added that the debate around IP’s place in fighting COVID-19 has had a positive impact insofar as it “put IP on the table and got people talking about it”.

In its statement, the Japanese office also cited its “open licensing database” where businesses can search for available technologies.

The latest releases follow similar joint statements issued by the EPO alongside the USPTO and CNIPA in April and June, respectively.

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