Official Fees to Increase Before the End of 2017

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The Government of the Republic of Indonesia is set to increase the official fees for several services carried out by the Directorate General of Intellectual Property of Indonesia. The draft fees – which were only announced on August 15, 2017 – are expected to be in force before the end of this year. The “ever-increasing operational cost” is believed to be the main driver for the increase. Notable increases and additions include the Indonesia – Japan PPH request, recordal of license agreement, recordal of name and/or address change, annuity maintenance basic and claim fees, and additional claims during filing. It is worth mentioning that the official fees for filing will not be impacted since they have just been overhauled in November 2016. Should you wish to obtain full information regarding the proposed increase, please contact Mr. Emirsyah Dinar at [email protected].  

The Indonesian Government to Issue Implementing Regulation for the Patent Law

Intellectual Property

Following several protests from various Chambers of Commerce around the world, the Government of the Republic of Indonesia is set to issue implementing regulation of Article 20 of Law No. 13 Year 2016 on Patents. The article stipulates that the Patent Holder shall manufacture the patented products or to use the patented process in Indonesia. The aim of this provision is not other than to support technology transfer and to increase the level of Direct Foreign Investment in Indonesia. This provision is meant to reflect the content of Article 7 of the TRIPS Agreement which stipulates that the IP enforcement shall contribute to the promotion of innovation and the dissemination of technology.   While the draft content remains out of public sight, we are adamant that the content of the Regulation will revolve on the authority of the Ministry of Law and Human Rights to form a specialized unit which role is to decide whether or not the Patent Holder can delay the manufacturing or the use of Patented Invention in Indonesia or not.   We shall update you with the draft bill once it is made available to public.   Should you have any question please contact us at [email protected] or visit our website for future updates regarding Patent Law in Indonesia.

Draft Presidential Decree on the Implementation of Patents by Patent Holders

Intellectual Property

As a response to many critics of Article 20 of the Law No. 13 Year 2016 on Patents (Patent Law), the Government of the Republic of Indonesia has finally issued a draft Presidential Decree on the Implementation of Patents by Patent Holders. As you may be aware, Article 20 of the Patent Law puts an immense pressure on the Patent Holder to either use the patented process or manufacture the patented products in Indonesia. Failure to do so, the patent registration may be subject to invalidation. While Article 20 of the Patent Law may be seen to have noble purposes – such as to speed up the transfer of technology and to incentivize foreign direct investments in Indonesia, this Article was proven to be one of the Articles many Patent Applicants and/or Holders – especially from the pharmaceutical industry – criticized since in actual business practice, setting up manufacturing plants is not always feasible given many factors such as cost, labour law, and restrictions on shares that may be owned by foreign entities in particular industries. Article 3 of the draft Presidential Decree stipulates that Patent Holders that have not manufactured their patented products or use their patented process are able to request the postponement of the implementation of a Registered Patent as stipulated in Article 20 of the Patent Law as long as the Patent Holder meets the following conditions: The Patent Holder does not have the capability to implement the patent and/or The implementation of the patent does not have justifiable economy value. The Patent Holder may request the postponement after 24 months at the earliest and 30 months at the latest effective from the Registration Date. The postponement request shall be granted after 36 months from the Registration Date. Kindly be advised that the Ministry will conduct an examination and there is still a chance that they will reject the request. Please bear in mind that the draft will be subject to revisions. We will inform you once the Presidential Decree has been finally passed. For more information regarding Patent Law and Patent Practice in Indonesia, please contact us at [email protected].

The Philippines: Declarations of Actual Use for Renewals of Trademark Registrations within 1 year from the Renewal Date for Trademarks for Renewals 2017 Onwards

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The Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines now requires Declarations of Actual Use for Renewals of Trademark Registrations within 1 year from the Renewal Date. This new requirement only applies to registered marks whose renewal dates fall on 2017 onwards, even if the request for renewal is filed earlier. This is based on: IPOPHL MEMORANDUM CIRCULAR NO. 17 – 0 10  Subject: RULES AND REGULATIONS ON TRADEMARKS, SERVICE MARKS, TRADE NAMES AND MARKED OR STAMPED CONTAINERS OF 2017 “RULE 204. Period to File Declaration of Actual Use. – The Office will not require any proof of use in commerce upon filing of an application. All applicants or registrants shall file a Declaration of Actual Use (DAU) of the mark with evidence to that effect and upon payment of the prescribed fee on the following periods: (a)  Within three (3) years from the filing date of the application; (b)  Within one (1) year from the fifth anniversary of the registration; (c) Within one (1) year from date of renewal; (d) Within one (1) year from the fifth anniversary of each renewal; Otherwise, the application shall be refused registration or the registered mark shall be removed from the Register by the Director. xxx RULE 206. Renewal DAU. – For registered marks due for renewal on 01 January 2017 onwards, regardless of the filing date of the Request for Renewal, submission of DAU referred to in Rule 204 (c) is required for purposes of registration maintenance.” Should you require further clarification, please contact [email protected] for more information.

Panduan Pendaftaran Merek Di Eropa

Intellectual Property

Dengan semakin maraknya pemasaran produk-produk yang berasal dari Indonesia di luar negeri, maka kebutuhan untuk mendapatkan hak atas Merek dari produk-produk tersebut merupakan salah satu komponen keputusan bisnis yang tidak dapat dikesampingkan. Saat ini, negara-negara Eropa seperti Belanda, Jerman, Swiss, Perancis, dan Italia merupakan tujuan ekspor bagi perusahaan-perusahaan Indonesia. Berdasarkan pengalaman kami, maka produsen makanan dan minuman asal Indonesia memiliki minat yang sangat tinggi untuk melindungi Mereknya di Eropa. Ada 2 cara untuk melindungi Merek anda di Eropa, di antaranya: 1. Permohonan Langsung ke Negara Tujuan Anda dapat melakukan permohonan pendaftaran Merek di negara tertentu yang merupakan pasar bagi produk anda. Kelebihan dari menggunakan cara ini adalah biaya yang relatif tidak terlalu mahal apabila anda hanya ingin mendapatkan hak atas Merek di negara-negara tertentu saja. Dengan cara ini, kami dapat menggunakan associate kami di negara-negara tertentu untuk melakukan permohonan pendaftaran Merek di negara-negara tertentu.  Biaya yang dibutuhkan bervariasi karena bergantung pada biaya resmi yang ditetapkan oleh Kantor Merek masing-masing negara. Jangka waktu yang dibutuhkan mulai dari pengajuan permohonan sampai pencetakan sertifikat pendaftaran Merek berbeda di tiap negara. Menurut pengalaman kami, anda membutuhkan setidaknya 18 bulan di Italia sementara di Jerman dan Perancis hanya membutuhkan 4-7 bulan saja. Hal ini dipengaruhi oleh sistem birokrasi setiap negara.   Kami sangat menyarankan untuk menggunakan metode ini apabila anda hanya tertarik untuk mendapatkan hak atas Merek anda di negara tertentu saja, mengingat biaya yang diperlukan akan semakin tinggi seiring bertambahnya jumlah negara yang diinginkan. 2. Permohonan Merek Uni Eropa Cara yang kedua adalah dengan mengajukan 1 permohonan pendaftaran Merek untuk 28 Negara Anggota Uni Eropa. Cara ini memang lebih murah apabila perusahaan memiliki pasar yang sangat luas di Eropa karena hanya membutuhkan 1 pendaftaran yang dapat melindungi hak atas Merek perusahaan anda di 28 Negara Anggota. Permohonan dapat diajukan di European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) atau di Kantor Merek Negara Anggota. Manajemen portfolio akan menjadi sangat mudah bagi anda karena anda hanya akan mendapatkan 1 sertifikat pendaftaran Merek, dibandingkan 28 sertifikat berbeda untuk 28 Negara Anggota. Namun, apabila permohonan Merek ini ditolak oleh salah satu Negara Anggota, maka permohonan Merek ini akan gugur untuk 27 Negara Anggota Lainnya. Anda juga tidak dapat memilih Negara Anggota tertentu saja apabila ingin menggunakan metode ini. Dengan demikian, maka sangat disarankan untuk melakukan pengecekan Merek secara menyeluruh di semua Negara Anggota Uni Eropa sebelum memutuskan untuk melakukan permohonan pendaftaran Merek. Waktu yang dibutuhkan mulai dari permohonan pendaftaran hingga pencetakan sertifikat pada umumnya adalah 6-12 bulan. Apabila ada oposisi dari pihak lain terhadap Merek anda, maka waktu yang dibutuhkan adalah sekitar 12-18 bulan sampai adanya keputusan dari EUIPO. Setelah permohonan pendaftaran dikabulkan oleh EUIPO, maka Merek anda akan berlaku selama 10 tahun dan dapat diperpanjang untuk 10 tahun berikutnya. Jika anda membutuhkan saran yang lebih detil dan spesifik mengenai pendaftaran dan perpanjangan  Merek di Eropa, silahkan hubungi kami di [email protected].

Amendments to the Indonesian Patent Law: Outsourced Substantive Examination, Restoring Lapsed Patent Registrations, Genetic Resources, and many more.

Intellectual Property

The Directorate General of Intellectual Property of Indonesia proposed several amendments to the current Patent Law No. 14 2001 as it may no longer be relevant to the ever changing technology and rapid growth of innovation both in Indonesia and overseas. The amendment also aims to increase the number or patent applications from Indonesia through incentives, e-filing system and easier annuity payment method. The suggested amendments also include the provision of outsourced role of substantive examination to external patent examiners. Another provision that is worth highlighting is the obligation by the patent applicant to identify the origin of Genetic Resource and/or Traditional Knowledge in a patent description document if the invention is related to Genetic Resource and/or Traditional Knowledge. The proposed amendments are currently under discussion at the House of Representatives of Indonesia. We believe the Amendment will be passed by the end of 2016. For a comprehensive article regarding the amendments to the Indonesian patent law, please contact us at [email protected].