JIPO Reports Increase in Registration

The Jamaica Intellectual Property Office (JIPO) is reporting an increase in the registration of trade marks by entertainers, record producers and event promoters.

State Minister in the Ministry of Industry, Investment and Commerce, Hon. Sharon Ffolkes-Abrahams, who made the disclosure while contributing to the 2014/15 Sectoral Debate in the House of Representatives on June 18, said the increase is a result of JIPO’s public education efforts.

Mrs. Ffolkes-Abrahams said the Ministry has been seeing much greater awareness of the process of registration, with applicants searching the system to find out if the trademark that they would like to register, is available, before applying.

“This is a very encouraging development, which augurs well for the future,” she said.

In the meantime, the State Minister informed that for the first time, the Faculty of Law at the University of the West Indies, Mona, in collaboration with JIPO, hosted a summer school programme on Intellectual Property from June 9 to 20, 2014.

The initiative covered topics such as patents and innovation, copyrights and related rights, the international trademark landscape, and IP as a business asset.

The JIPO has forged a partnership with WIPO to provide more training in IP in Jamaica. The move is part of efforts to facilitate growth of the creative industries.

JIPO was established in January 2001, out of recognition by the Government of the need to streamline, modernise and provide a focal point for the administration of both Industrial Property and Copyright and Related Rights, in order for it to fulfill its bilateral and multilateral obligations in the field of IP.