Intellectual Property Research Cooperation in East Asia[01]

Commissioner of Korea Intellectual Property Office, Mr. Min, Mr. Yoon, Mr. Ono, Mr. Sugiura[02] , Distinguished Audiences, it is a great pleasure for me and my colleagues to participate this important symposium in Seoul with our friends from Korea, and Japan. Here I do like to express my warmly congratulations to this Symposium.

In last year around this time, we held a symposium on intellectual property in Beijing with our Korean friends, including the researchers from Korean Intellectual Property Research Center (KIPRC). In that symposium, we discussed another important topic, the protection of genetic resources, traditional knowledge, and folklore, and exchanged our views briefly. Apparently, that was a tentative forum for both Korean scholars and Chinese scholars, and we tried to exchange views with each other. In the end of the symposium, Mr. Yoon, the director of KIPRC and I expressed same feeling that the symposium was better and better than we expected.

It is during that symposium, we decided that another symposium should be held in Seoul this year. At the beginning, it seems that only scholars and researchers from China and Korea shall show themselves in the symposium and exchange their views on the protection of the intellectual property. Now it is a great honor for us that the scholars from Japan, including scholars from Institute of Intellectual Property of Japan (IIP of Japan), are also in the symposium. So now we are going to utilize this symposium as forum to exchange the views on the protection of intellectual property among Chinese scholars, Korean scholars, and Japanese scholars.

The Intellectual Property Center of China Academy of Social Sciences (IPC of China) does have a long cooperation relationship with Institute of Intellectual Property of Japan. For example, Prof. Tang Guangliang in our center did his research work in Institute of Intellectual Property of Japan from 1998 to 1999. And in April 2002, IIP invited Prof. Zheng Chengsi, the director of our center, and Prof. Tang and I to Tokyo, holding a conference concerning the new development of the intellectual property system in China. To my knowledge, it is introduced by IIP that KIPRC contacted our center, and thereof established a cooperation relationship with our center.

While our center has a close cooperation relationship with either IIP of Japan or KIPRC, we three institutes have not held a joint symposium until now. Thus it is the first time that this important symposium brings our three institutes together. Here I would like to give my great thanks to the friends of KIPRC for their prominent efforts to organize this symposium, ant to give my great thanks to the friends of IIP of Japan for your participation of this symposium.

This symposium bears a great symbolic meaning for me. It does mean to me that the three institutes, IPC of China, IIP of Japan, and KIPRC, do share some common interests in the intellectual property research. Furthermore, this symposium does mean to me that the three countries in East Asia, China, Japan, and Korea, do have some common interests in the protection of intellectual property rights. It is no doubt that China, Japan, and Korea have a close economic relationship, and the protection of intellectual property is very important for this relationship.

In yesterday afternoon, we held a free discussion with some representatives from Korean business circles. I learned from this discussion that Korean business and Japanese business have a close relation, and because of the close relationship, there are some problems involved and shall be resolved. From this discussion I learned as well that Korean business circles are interested in the Intellectual Property System of China, and concerned some problems such as piracy and counterfeiting in China. This information does convince me that Korea, Japan, and China have some common interests in the protection of intellectual property rights, and the scholars from three countries shall cooperate with each other in the study and research of the intellectual property.

In preparing this symposium, KIPRC suggested some topics, such as Intellectual Property policy mechanism, and enforcement (including the special IP court). After getting their opinion, we suggested to discuss the Special IP Court as a separate topic. Japan established its Intellectual Property Appeal Court, following the example of US Federal Circuit of Appeal Court. Korea also established its special patent appeal court a 1998. Those are the interesting events for us, for now in China we are discussing the possibility to establish a special intellectual property court system, including an Intellectual Property Appeal Court. In this respect, we would like to share your perspectives on the establishment of the intellectual property appeal court.

Of course, we are interested in other topics, such as IP policy mechanism, and the enforcement of intellectual property rights. Actually now China is making its efforts to draft its national intellectual property strategy, and focusing on the enforcement of intellectual property rights. In the following symposium, my three colleagues will share their perspectives on those two topics and the topic of special intellectual property court.

Yesterday, we signed a MOU among three institutes, promising to cooperate on the research of various issues on intellectual property, to exchange the research materials, and to hold joint symposiums to present the results of the research. It is no doubt that this MOU is a new beginning for three institutes to cooperate in the research of intellectual property, to discuss the topics we are interested, to seek the solutions for the problems the three counties are facing.

I do believe that the MOU and the symposium are the new starting points for every institute, and for every person in this symposium. And I do believe as well that this symposium will be a successful one, and every person in this room will make their best efforts to contribute to the success of the symposium.

This is the end of my brief speech, and thank you for your attention!

[01] This is a brief speech delivered by Prof. Li, Mingde, deputy director of Intellectual Property Center of China Academy of Social Sciences, on behalf of the Chinese delegates, who are participating "2005 International Intellectual Property Symposium", organized by Korean Intellectual Property Research Center, Intellectual Property Center of China Academy of Social Sciences, and Institute of Intellectual Property of Japan in Seoul, Korea, in October 27, 2005.

[02] Mr. Kyung-tak Min, the president of Korea Invention Promotion Association; Mr. Myeong-hoo Yoon, the director of Korean Intellectual Property Research Center; Mr. Shijiro Ono, Deputy Commissioner of Japan Patent Office; Mr. Jun Sugiura, Director of Research Department, Institute of Intellectual Property of Japan.