Heads of Korean, Chinese, and Japanese Patent Offices Hold In-Person Meeting in Busan After 4 Years

The heads of the patent offices of Korea, China, and Japan will hold a directors' meeting in Busan. This is the first time in four years that the heads of the three countries' patent offices have met in person for such a meeting.

The Korean Intellectual Property Office (KIPO) announced on the 9th that the "23rd Korea-China-Japan Patent Office Heads Meeting" will be held from the 30th of this month to the 1st of next month at Signiel Busan in Haeundae-gu, Busan.

The directors' meeting aims to exchange and utilize patent examination information, harmonize patent systems, and establish international norms in the field of intellectual property rights. This meeting, which began in 2001, has not been held for the past four years due to the COVID-19 pandemic and other reasons.

This year, KIPO plans to reaffirm the cooperative achievements among the three countries' patent offices, which have been maintained online during the COVID-19 period, and lead discussions on special topics such as inventorship of artificial intelligence (whether to recognize AI as an inventor) and patent examination standards related to AI.

Additionally, a "Korea-China-Japan User Symposium" featuring intellectual property experts will be held concurrently with the directors' meeting under the theme "The Role of Intellectual Property for Small and Medium Innovative Enterprises."

At the symposium, each country will introduce intellectual property policies aimed at promoting innovation in small and medium-sized enterprises, and representatives from financial institutions of the three countries will explain funding methods for small innovative enterprises using intellectual property.

Lee In-sil, Commissioner of KIPO, emphasized, "The share of Korea, China, and Japan in the total number of patent applications worldwide increased from 42% in 2001 to 62% in 2021," adding, "This means that the role of the three countries in the field of intellectual property has significantly increased."

He also stated, "This year marks the first face-to-face meeting in four years since the COVID-19 pandemic. KIPO will take the lead in this meeting to strengthen cooperation among the three countries' patent offices in the field of intellectual property and strive to lay the foundation for a further leap forward."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.