Construction of the "Two Zones" brings new opportunities and challenges to the development of talents for intellectual property rights (IPR). On April 22, the forum "IPR Talents and the Two Zones", part of the talent exchanges activities for 2021 Beijing Intellectual Property Week took place. At the forum, Beijing Municipal Intellectual Property Office (the Office) and Beijing Overseas Talents Centre signed a cooperation agreement on intellectual property service for overseas talents.

Upgrading of IPR service for overseas talents

Pertaining to this cooperation agreement, Beijing will set up an intellectual property service platform for overseas talents. In response to demands from overseas talents of different types, the platform will develop full-fledged and pertinent intellectual property public service products like training courses and database construction. A platform will be established to match the mutual needs of Beijing-based intellectual property service institutions and overseas talents. Beijing will also seek to customize characteristic intellectual property solutions for key overseas talents and their employers through government purchases of services, i.e. intellectual property mining, application, arrangement and licensing, early warning analysis, intellectual property strategy formulation, and protection of rights and counterfeiting efforts, etc.

In the future, volunteer IPR experts will be organized to provide services for overseas talents, and intellectual property special tutoring mechanism will be set up for key overseas talents. The two parties will work together to offer special services for protection of overseas intellectual property rights, and introduce comprehensive intellectual property services for key science and technology programs, according to this cooperation agreement.

Innovation of IPR work for the "Two Zones"

It is reported that, in the 251 specific tasks for the "Two Zones" plan, the Office is responsible for 16 tasks, including 13 tasks to be led and three other tasks to be supported by the Office. So far, seven tasks of the 13 tasks to be led by the Office have been implemented, while the other three tasks supported by the Office have been completed as confirmed by the leading departments.

Many of the aforesaid tasks prove to be exemplary and pioneering. For example, the "Pilot on Opening up of Patent Agency" is related to overseas returnees, permitting the launch of patent agent qualification exam for foreigners and establishment of permanent representative offices of foreign patent agencies in Beijing, etc. The Office has issued the introductory letter on policies to permit residence of representative offices of foreign patent agencies in Beijing and received consultation from a number of interested parties.

Meanwhile, efforts are being made in accelerating the "Pledge Financing Work". By building the Beijing City Intellectual Property Pledge Financing Centre, Beijing will provide Beijing-based enterprises and talents with full-chain intellectual property pledge financing services. The service desk for patent and trademark pledge registration was already open to the public on February 9, 2021.

Moreover, Beijing is working to explore institutional construction on the patent, copyrights and trade secrets of international digital product, conduct high-efficiency and convenient digital import and export inspection to trade of software and Internet services. Beijing supports the offering of service for trademark and pledge registration in pilot free trade zones, and the pilot program on securitization of intellectual properties where conditions are mature. Progress is being made in the creation and improvement of the institutional system for intellectual property in digital trade, as well as the construction of a highland for innovative talents in the "Two Zones".

(Source: Beijing Daily)