KIPO Expands Scope of Korea-UAE Intellectual Property Cooperation

The scope of cooperation between South Korea and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in the field of intellectual property is set to expand.

The Korean Intellectual Property Office (KIPO) announced on November 19 that, on November 18 (local time), it reached a mutual agreement with the UAE Ministry of Economy and Tourism at the Qasr Al Watan Presidential Palace in Abu Dhabi to amend the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for deepened cooperation in the field of intellectual property.

The agreement, which was signed in the presence of the leaders of both countries, aims to expand and supplement the "Korea-UAE Deepened Cooperation MOU in the Field of Intellectual Property" signed in January 2023. The "Korea-UAE Summit" served as the occasion for the signing of this agreement.

Under the agreement, the two countries will include the following areas within the scope of cooperation: utilization of artificial intelligence (AI) technology in intellectual property administration, intellectual property transactions and commercialization, and protection and enforcement of intellectual property through crackdowns on counterfeit goods and the use of legal and institutional frameworks.

After signing the agreement, KIPO Commissioner Kim Yongseon traveled to Dubai for a bilateral meeting with Abdullah bin Touq Al Marri, UAE Minister of Economy and Tourism.

The bilateral meeting was held to share the current status of intellectual property policies of both agencies and to discuss key directions for future cooperation.

In particular, both sides agreed at this meeting to institutionalize "high-level meetings" for regular discussions on mutually interesting topics such as AI and intellectual property finance, and to cooperate on the application of AI technologies for cracking down on counterfeit goods.

Commissioner Kim stated, "Through this agreement with the UAE, we can now look forward to expanding exports of K-intellectual property to the Middle East. KIPO will further strengthen intellectual property cooperation with Middle Eastern countries to simultaneously enhance the protection of core technologies for Korean companies operating locally and to vitalize technology transactions."

Meanwhile, South Korea and the UAE have maintained a cooperative relationship in the field of intellectual property for a long period, starting with the "Comprehensive Cooperation MOU in the Field of Intellectual Property" signed in May 2010, followed by the "Korea-UAE Patent Examination Cooperation MOU" in February 2014, and the UAE Patent Information System Establishment Project (from February 2016 to February 2019).

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