By the SMEs Division of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO)

1) Articles
2) News
3) Practical Guides and Useful Links
4) WIPO Activities

1) ARTICLES

TRADE SECRETS: POLICY FRAMEWORKS AND BEST PRACTICES "Once confidential business information is disclosed to competitors, its value is lost forever". So what should enterprises do to keep their secret information safe? In "Trade Secrets: Policy Frameworks and Best Practices" you will find an overview of policies that are generally adopted by enterprises to make sure their trade secrets are adequately protected and maintain their commercial value.
See: www.wipo.int/sme/en/documents/wipo_magazine/05_2002.pdf

ROLE OF THE IP SYSTEM IN DEVELOPMENT AND MARKETING OF NEW PRODUCTS In the lifecycle of a new product there are a number of successive, often overlapping, stages, starting from the product's initial conceptualization, through its development, production and marketing to its maturity and eventual obsolescence. At each stage of the process, intellectual property protection may have a role to play.  The article "The Role of the IP System in Development and Marketing of New Products" analyses the lifecycle of a product pointing out which IP rights may be of assistance at each stage.
See: www.wipo.int/sme/en/documents/pdf/lifecycle.pdf

2)  NEWS

NEW INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY INITIATIVE FOR WELSH SMEs UNVEILED A new initiative to encourage Welsh SMEs to protect their ideas and innovations is getting under way and is set to be launched this month. The scheme has been designed to equip innovators and entrepreneurs with the knowledge and financial means to protect their new ideas. "IP Wales is about helping SMEs maximize their hidden assets" says Andrew Beale, Director of IP Wales, "companies and individuals could be sitting on pots of gold but are totally unaware." IP Wales follows in the footsteps of the success of the pilot Swansea IPR Initiative. More detailed information on the Swansea IPR Initiative is available at: www.wipo.int/sme/en/best_practices/swansea.htm

CD-ROM ON INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY FOR SMALL AND MEDIUM-SIZED ENTERPRISES A CD-ROM product entitled "Intellectual Property for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises" has been produced by the SMEs Division of WIPO. It contains the entire SME web site of WIPO in English, French and Spanish along with other relevant information from other parts of the web site of WIPO. Copies of the CD-ROM will be made available to IP offices and SME support institutions, on request.

IPR-HELPDESK LAUNCH EVENT The IPR-Helpdesk will be holding its launch event at the "Palais de Justice" in Brussels, on 4 July 2002.  This event aims at presenting the activities of the project: new Website structure, Helpline, Dissemination Action, new Community diffusion and protection rules in international research projects. Additionally, the event will present the activities of the Innovation Relay Centres and the Gate2Growth projects, also related with the Innovation and SMEs Programme. The event is open to any interested party. Should you be interested in attending this event, please contact the IPR-Helpdesk on ipr-helpdesk@global-eu.com
 

WIPO AND SIPO SIGN FRAMEWORK AGREEMENT INCLUDING SPECIAL FOCUS ON SMEs The Director General of WIPO, Dr. Kamil Idris, and the Commissioner of the State Intellectual Property Office, Mr. Wang Jingchuan, signed a framework cooperation agreement between WIPO and the Government of the People's Republic of China. The framework agreement covers main areas of cooperation including, among others, protection and promotion of intellectual property in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), dissemination and use of patent information, promotion of the collective administration of copyright and related rights, promotion of the protection of trademarks and distinctive signs and development of human resources in the field of intellectual property. For more information, see: www.wipo.int/pressroom/en/updates/2002/upd167.htm

3) PRACTICAL GUIDES AND USEFUL LINKS

BIOTECH PRIMER The Biotechnology Industry Organization's primer on genomics and intellectual property provides useful guidance on intellectual property issues relevant to the biotech industry. See:  www.bio.org/genomics/primer.html

4)  WIPO ACTIVITIES

WIPO AND ITC WORKSHOP AT THE DAKAR BIENNIAL On May 14, 16 and 18, 2002, WIPO and the International Trade Centre (ITC) jointly presented a workshop at the Dakar Biennial (Dak'Art 2002) on "Contemporary African Art and the International Market." The focus of the workshop was to assist African artists in commercializing their products in international markets. The workshop devoted particular attention on issues relating to the IP rights of artists and the importance of IP for generating revenues from artistic works. The SMEs Division of WIPO made presentations on "The international intellectual property system and its branches in Africa", "Intellectual property, a valuable business asset", and presented a case study of an African entrepreneur. WIPO presentations are available at: www.wipo.int/sme/fr/activities/meetings/dakar_02/index.htm. A publication of the entire workshop will also be available shortly.
 

WIPO SEMINAR IN ROMANIA The National Seminar on IP and SMEs, co-organized by WIPO and the State Office for Inventions and Trademarks, was held on May 14 and 15 in Polana Brasov (Romania). Experts from Denmark, Finland, Norway, Romania and WIPO made presentations on policy recommendations at the national and international level as well as on SME empowerment through the protection and commercialization of IP. Over 120 participants were present at the workshop. Presentations are available on-line at: www.wipo.int/sme/en/activities/meetings/romania_02/index.htm

SEMINAR FOR ITALIAN SMEs A seminar on intellectual property for SMEs was held in Giardini-Naxos (Sicily) on the occasion of the PATLIB conference organized by the European Patent Office in cooperation with the Italian Patents and Trademarks Office. WIPO made a presentation on "Innovation and exploitation of IP rights by SMEs". More information on the seminar and on the PATLIB conference in general is available at: www.european-patent-office.org/epidos/conf/patlib2002/pres_down.php
 

WIPO INTERREGIONAL FORUM ON SMALL AND MEDIUM-SIZED ENTERPRISES The Moscow Interregional Forum on IP and SMEs took place from May 22 to 24, 2002, in the premises of the Russian Agency for Patents and Trademarks, co-organizer of the event.  At the Forum, some 220 participants from 26 countries discussed international and national perspectives on improving access to and the use of the intellectual property system by SMEs. On the last day of the Forum, a Round Table discussion dealt with the key elements of a national plan of action on intellectual property and its use by SMEs. See: www.wipo.int/sme/en/activities/meetings/moscow_02/index.htm
 

FIRST WIPO EVENT IN MALTA  The WIPO national forum on "Using the Intellectual Property System for Business Success of Small and Medium-sized Enterprises" held in Valletta (Malta) on May 27, 2002 was the first WIPO event in Malta. Some 90 participants attended the forum representing both the private sector and SME support institutions. The participants engaged in active discussions and the interest in the subject was evident from participant's feedback. WIPO's document for the Malta forum is available on-line at: www.wipo.int/sme/en/activities/meetings/malta_02/index.htm

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