1. KIPO to perform examinations of trademark/design application within the shortest period in the world by 2017
The KIPO (Korean Intellectual Property Office) will shorten examination processing periods of trademark/design applications at the fastest level in the world by 2017.
KIPO published a ‘plan to carry forward an improvement of the examination quality of trademark/design applications. It also announced that it would shorten the examination period of a trademark application within three (3) months and the examination period of a design application within five (5) months by 2017 to support a company’s marketing activities and obtain an early right.
KIPO’s examination processing period of a trademark application is 8.9 months based on 2012, which is too far behind USPTO’s 3.2 months. KIPO’s examination processing period of a design application is 8.8 months, which is slower than SIPO’s (State Intellectual Property Office of the People’s Republic of China) 3.0 months and JPO’s 6.3 months.
In May 2013 KIPO totally amended the Design Protection Law after twenty-three (23) years. Following the total amendment to the Law, KIPO plans to shorten the examination processing period of a trademark application to the world top level by carrying forward a total amendment to the Trademark Law within this year.
KIPO also strengthens a positive examination to positively protect a trademark that a company actually uses and wants to use as a right.
2. Three (3) countries, Korea, China and Japan, start together taking actions to IP (Intellectual Property) infringements
- International Intellectual Property Training Institute, Chinese and Japanese training institutes held an IP joint seminar
KIPO’s IIPI (International IP Training Institute), Chinese CIPTC (Construction Industry Professional Training Council) and Japanese INPIT (Industrial Property Information and Training held a ‘2nd Korea-China-Japan IP joint seminar’ on ‘Korean, Chinese and Japanese IP dispute cases and protection policies’ in KIPS (Korea Intellectual Property Service Center’.
Korean companies have experienced an increase in IP disputes in the international society due to lack of IP understanding of competitors and exporting countries. Specifically, patent disputes between companies in nearby China and Japan have frequently occurred. Therefore, this seminar was prepared to effectively find IP protection systems and coping plans relating to these countries.
Prior to this event, the heads’ meeting of the Training Institutes of these three (3) countries was held to discuss cooperative plans for a development in the IP education field, such as e-learning cooperation, mutual dispatch of lectures, joint development of education course, etc. Further, the practical working-level meetings between Korea and China and between Korea and Japan were held.
3. Samsung Display-LG Display withdrew patent litigation and patent invalidation trials
Samsung Display and LG Display announced that they agreed to immediately withdraw the patent litigation and patent invalidation trials raised against each other.
In February, the representatives of both companies had agreed to control the consumptive fighting and had withdrawn the injunction trials, respectively. As they agreed to withdraw the patent litigation and patent invalidation trials, all disputes pending up to now were finished.
Since Samsung Display filed the injunction trial in September 2012, these two companies had an offensive and defensive battle with each other by bringing the patent infringement prohibition and compensation trials. The invalidation trials on both companies’ patents were filed with KIPT (Korean Intellectual Property Tribunal) in November 2012 and January 2013, respectively.
Both companies have withdrawn the patent litigation but it is not that they will allow a license of each other’s patent. A plan to use the patents in the future will be continuously discussed.
4. Commercialization of graphene will be advanced by securing an original technology
- Current states of graphene commercialization development and trends of the relevant patent applications
Korean research staff has secured the original technology of a graphene semiconductor to advance the commercialization of graphene by one step. A bonding structure of a device composed of only graphene which was for the first time developed by the research staff in the world is the core technology which is positively necessary for the realization of a computer, which is faster by 100 times compared to the existing semiconductor using silicon, and the practical use of flexible transparent display.
According to KIPO, the number of graphene-related patent applications filed with KIPO from 2005 to June 2013 was 2,921.
Trends of the applications by years are as follows:
Since 2004 when the separation of graphene was first achieved, 3 applications were filed in 2005and 7 applications were filed 2006. However, the number of the relevant applications slowly increased to 56 in 2008 and it was 204 after 2009 showing an explosive increase. Then, 423 applications were filed in 2010 and 731 applications were filed with an almost double increase. 954 applications were filed in 2012, showing the rate of increase by about 5 times compared with 2009.
Regarding the rate of the applications by Korean applicants to foreign applicants, Korean applicants had more than 70% after 2007 and reached 97% in 2013.
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