IPOPHL eyes nationwide survey on intellectual property awareness
MANILA, Philippines — The Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOPHL) is looking at conducting a national survey that would gauge the country’s awareness of intellectual property (IP) issues such as the effects of counterfeiting and piracy to the industry.
According to a statement from IPOPHL on Friday, they have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) to pursue a “first-of-its-kind” survey on the level of IP awareness among Filipinos.
IPO is eyeing the release of the survey by 2021, with WIPO contributing at least P2 million for its implementation.
“The MoU, signed in June 2020 by IPOPHL Director General Rowel S. Barba and WIPO DG Francis Gurry, specifically aims to create a baseline survey that will gauge the public’s general perception on the effects of counterfeiting, piracy and other infringing acts to rights holders, consumers and the local industry,” IPOPHL said.
Intellectual property issues have been set aside by a lot of Filipinos as initially, it ranks low on a person’s daily hierarchy of needs, according to the agency. IPOPHL even admitted back in 2018 that its programs are geared at making discussions on intellectual property relevant, especially as it has no direct effect on people’s livelihood.
However, the agency noted that people tend to forget that almost every product that the average individual encounters everyday consists of intellectual property, making it a part of Filipinos’ daily lives.
IPOPHL explained that its role in the survey entails the selection of a service provider who would conduct the survey, including the creation of questions based on the WIPO Consumer Survey Toolkit on Respect for IP, which would determine the respondents’ view of IP issues
Deputy Director General Nelson Laluces hopes that the survey would help IPOPHL in its strategy to heighten awareness on IP-related concerns.
“With this nationwide survey, IPOPHL will be able to improve its IP awareness strategy and the approach will be based on the findings of this survey,” Laluces said.
“We will also be able to identify priority areas and make the most out of our resources. This will enable us to detect the gaps in our current programs and address them accordingly,” he added.
