TAGUIG - The Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOPHL) launched its certification course on Licensing, Audit, Valuation and Management of Intellectual Property Rights (LAV IP), an intensive four-day seminar designed to sharpen the skills of professionals for the management and valuation of intellectual property (IP) and intangible assets, according to the official website of IPOPHL.

The certification course, offered by IPOPHL’s Documentation, Information and Technology Transfer Bureau (DITTB) will run from March to May. Another course will be conducted between July to September.

The LAV IP series aligns with IPOPHL’s objective of promoting strategic IP valuation and commercialization to improve the country’s competitiveness and spur economic growth. 

“Uncovering and maximizing the economic value of IP assets through licensing, audit, valuation and management of IP rights is integral if creators are to maneuver and compete in today’s digital economy,” said Director General Brigitte M. da Costa-Villaluz at the opening of the first session held March 4. 

She emphasized how “leveraging high-value IP and intangible assets is central to building one’s competitive advantage in the modern economy that has shifted its priority toward intangible assets.”

In 2023, the World Intellectual Property Organization found that intangible investment in economies accounts for over half of global GDP and has consistently outpaced total tangible investment for decades. Aggregate intangible investment more than doubled from $2.9 trillion in 1995 to $6.9 trillion in 2023, a significant difference compared to the 73% increase of tangible investment from $2.7 trillion to $4.7 trillion in the same period.

“This learning series aims to provide IP owners and stakeholders strategic insights in managing their IP rights. IPOPHL’s goal is to empower Filipinos to use their IP assets for inclusive economic and social development so that they can build better lives for themselves and for others,” DITTB Director Ralph Jarvis H. Alindogan said.

A LAV course participant, Victoria Malaya, a professor at Don Mariano Marcos Memorial State University, shared insights on how the seminar could support the institution as it intensifies its commercialization efforts.

“We conducted an audit of our intellectual property (IP) last year, and from that, we identified the need to learn how to transform our IP into valuable assets. While we already understand the importance of IP protection, activities like this LAV IP seminar are crucial for us to acquire more strategies for managing and commercializing them,” said Malaya, who also serves as the Director of the university’s Innovation and Technology Commercialization Office. 

She added that successful IP commercialization could enhance the university’s global standing, including its position in the leveling of state universities and colleges. 

Glacelle Alynne Malinao, Senior Agriculturist at the Bureau of Agricultural Research (BAR), emphasized her agency’s role in ensuring that agricultural research is coordinated and benefits farmers and fisherfolk. 

“We were assigned to manage and monitor all IP applications within the Department of Agriculture (DA) and its related agencies. This seminar would also help us identify the best modes of commercialization and improve the DA’s latest IP guidelines, which were implemented in 2023,” she added.

The DA’s new IP guidelines, crafted with the assistance of the DITTB, signifies a shift even in the public sector to unlock benefits from intangible assets. 

By the end of the two sets of series, the DITTB expects to have empowered about 50 stakeholders with the knowledge and tools needed to propel IP commercialization efforts forward.