IP use in ecozones promoted

MANILA, Philippines — The Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOPHL) has partnered with the Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA) to promote the use of the intellectual property (IP) system in ecozones.

In a statement, the IPOPHL said it forged a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the PEZA to promote IP protection to current and potential investors in the special economic zones (SEZs).

“By underlining the importance of protecting and enforcing IP rights in these areas, current and potential companies and investors can do business in the Philippines knowing their IP assets are in safe hands,” IPOPHL director-general Rowel Barba said.

Along with the work plan, the two parties are set to mainstream IP into PEZA’s developmental goals by conducting knowledge orientation and skills training to its officials and staff.

For his part, PEZA director-general Tereso Panga expressed the agency’s enthusiasm to form the work plan with the help of existing investors and locators in SEZs.

“[This MOU] can simplify our procedures to make it easy for  our locators — those particularly applying for patents and trademarks. From our end, we would also look into inputs from our investors,” Panga said.

As of September 2023, PEZA had established 422 ecozones across the country, which are home to 4,372 locator companies.

Meanwhile, the IPOPHL stressed that the Philippines remains an attractive investment destination to neighboring countries since its exclusion from the European Commission’s IP watchlist in 2020 and the United States Trade Representative’s Special 301 Report in 2013.

“We want to boost the confidence of foreign direct investors where PEZA is a key player. As such, our goal here is to assure investors that the Philippines is a suitable and secure destination with a strong IP system where investments are protected,” Barba said.