Last week, the UK Intellectual Property Office (UKIPO) and its Swiss counterpart, the Federal Institute of Intellectual Property, signed a “declaration of intention” to “concentrate on sharing of best practice in areas of common interest.”
It will include a variety of activities, including:
- exchange of experiences, knowledge and expertise on programmes, tools, platforms and policies on the promotion, utilisation, exploitation and commercialisation of intellectual property;
- exchange of information on the development of public awareness programmes on intellectual property rights, including programmes that are applicable to youths and students;
- exchange of officials and experts; conduct of joint training activities, seminars, workshops and programmes on intellectual property, especially in the areas of artificial intelligence and IT innovation;
- organisation of symposia and conferences on subject matters of mutual interest;
- exchange of information and views on regional and international policy developments and trends of mutual interest.
It’s worth noting that AI and IT innovation are listed specifically as areas of emphasis. The UKIPO is currently reviewing responses to its recent consultation on how the copyright and patent system should handle AI-created inventions, and the government has stated that it wants the UK to be at the forefront of the AI revolution, “to encourage innovation in AI technology and promote its use for the public good.”
National patent offices would desire to share notes on IP matters
Given that neither Switzerland nor the United Kingdom will be members of the UPC, which was resurrected earlier this year, it is somewhat predictable that national patent offices would desire to share notes on IP matters.
This was the latest in a series of announcements about increased cooperation between the two countries, with a memorandum of understanding on customs cooperation and bilateral cooperation between the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF) and the UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) both made in February.
The latter initiative intends to facilitate collaboration and collaboration between UK and Swiss experts, with the possibility of large-scale cooperative research projects in the future. With the recent approval of the UK’s ambitious Advanced Research and Invention Agency, it’s interesting to see R&D efforts at the forefront of Government policy.
This declaration emphasizes the need of collaboration across the offices, with an emphasis on sharing best practices in mutually beneficial areas. The two agencies have outlined a series of measures for tighter collaboration in order to modernize and improve services for IP users in both jurisdictions.
A crucial component of the proposed collaboration is the sharing of expertise and know-how between the offices. The declaration allows for workers to be seconded between the two offices to improve skills and knowledge while also sharing their expertise for mutual gain. It will assist both offices in embracing the worldwide challenges and opportunities posed by new and future technologies, to the benefit of the IP community as a whole.
(As cited in mondag.com)
You can see a list UK IP firms and Switzerland IP Firms here