Question & AnswerQ&A (Republic Act No. 8293)
The full title is "Intellectual Property Code of the Philippines."
The State recognizes that an effective intellectual and industrial property system is vital for development, technology transfer, foreign investment attraction, and market access. It protects exclusive rights of creators and ensures that intellectual property use serves a social function promoting national development and the common good.
They include Copyright and Related Rights; Trademarks and Service Marks; Geographic Indications; Industrial Designs; Patents; Layout-Designs (Topographies) of Integrated Circuits; and Protection of Undisclosed Information.
The IPO is the government office created to implement intellectual property laws, including examining patent, trademark, utility model, and industrial design applications; registering technology transfer arrangements; adjudicating contested IP proceedings; publishing IP information; and coordinating with other agencies for IP rights enforcement.
The IPO is headed by a Director General assisted by two Deputy Director Generals. They must be natural born Filipinos, at least 35 years old, college graduates, and of proven competence, integrity and independence. The Director General and at least one Deputy must be members of the Philippine Bar with 10 years or more legal practice.
An invention must be new, involve an inventive step (non-obvious), and be industrially applicable. It may pertain to a product, a process, or an improvement thereof.
The right to a patent belongs to the inventor, his heirs, or assigns. When two or more persons jointly made an invention, the right to the patent belongs to them jointly. If two or more persons made an invention independently, the first to file an application has the right to the patent.
A patent confers on its owner the exclusive right to prevent unauthorized making, using, selling, offering for sale, or importing of the patented product or any product obtained from a patented process. It also allows the owner to assign or license the patent.
Limitations include use of a patented product put on the market by the owner or with consent; private non-commercial use; use for experiments; preparation of medicine as prescribed by medical professionals; and use on foreign ships or vehicles temporarily entering the Philippines.
Repeated infringement after a final court judgment may result in imprisonment from six months to three years and/or a fine from One hundred thousand pesos to Three hundred thousand pesos at the discretion of the court.
Grounds include national emergency or extreme urgency; public interest including health and nutrition; anti-competitive practices; public non-commercial use without satisfactory reason; and patented invention not worked commercially in the Philippines without satisfactory reason.
A patent is valid for 20 years from the filing date of the application.
Marks that are immoral, deceptive, scandalous; identical or confusingly similar to existing marks; disparaging; consist exclusively of generic terms; or contrary to public order or morality, among others, cannot be registered.
The registration is valid for ten years from the date of registration and may be renewed for successive ten-year periods.
The owner has the exclusive right to prevent unauthorized use of identical or similar signs for identical or similar goods or services resulting in a likelihood of confusion.
Unauthorized reproduction, dramatization, translation, public performance, communication to the public, distribution, or rental of copyrighted works without permission are copyright infringements.
Copyright protection lasts during the life of the author and for 50 years following the author's death.
Moral rights include the right of the author to be attributed as creator, to object to distortion or mutilation of the work prejudicial to reputation, and to restrain use of the author's name in connection with works not created by them.
Remedies include injunctions restraining infringement, actual and exemplary damages, attorney's fees, destruction of infringing goods and materials, and criminal penalties for repeated or willful violations.