Study on the Needs for Intellectual Property Researchin ASEAN Region and the Feasibility Study on the Establishment of ASEAN
Intellectual Property Research Institute*
Overseas Researcher: Yoshitoshi TANAKA **This research focuses on the theme of intellectual property research on the protection andutilization of intellectual property that supports further development in the ASEAN region. In orderto solve various problems related to intellectual property, we will explore issues of intellectual
property research that should be promoted in the future. Specifically, in order to promote economic
development in the ASEAN region, we will collect problems related to intellectual property thatshould be solved through questionnaire surveys and extract the research needs required to solve them.
The results of the questionnaire survey will be quantified by numerical analysis, and further
examination will be conducted through interviews, which will clarify the theme of intellectual
property research that should be promoted in the future. These findings will be used as the basis forfurther intellectual property awareness and intellectual property policy in the ASEAN region. In
addition, based on the knowledge obtained, we will proceed with specific discussions regarding theestablishment of the Institute for Intellectual Property. The survey results of research needs in the
ASEAN region and the idea of establishing an Intellectual Property Institute will serve as a basis for
improving mutual understanding and support in this region.

I. Background and purpose of this research
1. Background
Various growth strategies are being developed on a global scale, such as improving theinternational competitiveness of industries, creating innovation, industry-academia-government
collaboration, improving productivity through the use of IT, and actively responding to globalization.
In order to appropriately promote these measures, it is necessary to strategically create, protect, andutilize intellectual property, which is taken up as one of the important agenda items for multilateral* This is a summary of the report published under the 2019 Collaborative Research Project on Harmonization of Industrial Property

Right Systems under a commission from the Japan Patent Office.

** Professor, Dept. of Industrial Engineering and Economics, Tokyo Institute of Technology at Vietnam Intellectual Property ResearchInstitute, Ministry of Science and Technology, as Overseas Researcher under the Program.

iand bilateral negotiations. And in many countries, intellectual property education has been vigorously
conducted in order to spread the intellectual property rights system on a global scale. It can be said
that a great deal of educational support from developed countries has produced many results so far.
However, in order to plan and execute measures related to intellectual property, in addition to theintellectual property education so far, analysis of the current situation surrounding intellectual
property, analysis of issues to be solved, and discussion of specific solutions is necessary. Indeed, theenhancement of intellectual property research is required. The subjects of intellectual property
research are very diverse, including case studies, legal studies such as law amendment, research on
various procedures, research on international institutional harmony, factor analysis of quality andefficiency improvement of examination procedures, analysis of intellectual property information,
intellectual property evaluation methods, industry-academia collaboration, corporate organization
reform, intellectual property strategy, etc. However, the research institutes responsible for these
intellectual property studies are limited to some developed countries. The current situation is that
research institutes that specialize in intellectual property systems, which are an important pillar ofindustrial development in the global economy, are not yet fully developed.
(1) Importance of ASEAN
In terms of Japan's policies for improving industrial competitiveness, overseas support policies,
and international contributions, ASEAN exists as a neighboring region and from a historicalbackground. Therefore, there is no doubt that the development of intellectual property research inthis region is an important point for both sides. Furthermore, economic integration within the ASEAN
region has been gaining momentum due to the AEC (ASEAN Economic Community) established at
the end of 2015. It has been expanding its activities in a wide range of fields such as politics, economy,
trade and energy, and at the same time it is entering the stage of promoting external negotiations withawareness of the ASEAN Initiative.
(2) IP activities in ASEAN region
In 1996, the ASEAN Working Group on Intellectual Property Cooperation (AWGIPC) wasestablished. Since 2004, it has developed an ASEAN Intellectual Property Action Plan. And until
2015, they have been working hard to realize various plans. With the acceleration of ASEAN
economic integration from 2016 to 2020, a new Action Plan has been created. Among ASEAN
activities, actions of AWGIPC, a working group on intellectual property rights, are becoming more
active.

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(3) Situation of IP research in ASEAN region
There is a notable case in Vietnam as a movement of intellectual property research in the
ASEAN region. The Vietnam Intellectual Property Research Institute (VIPRI) was established in2007 as a government research institute of the Ministry of Science and Technology, and is the centerof intellectual property research in Vietnam. VIPRI's main business includes intellectual property
research, education, consulting, and expert opinions for intellectual property arbitration. Other
research activities related to intellectual property in the ASEAN region include mainly law and casestudies conducted by the university's faculty of law. In addition, at the University of Singapore, MOT
education is practiced and intellectual property subjects are set up in it.
(4) IP research needs of ASEAN countries
ASEAN's intellectual property research needs vary widely from country to country. In thisstudy, we will clarify the needs of intellectual property research in ASEAN countries.
(5) Expectations on ASEAN Initiative
I think this is an era in which ASEAN initiatives should be respected rather than being pushed
by developed countries. And it is desirable to build a system for that purpose. There are few studies
on the relationship between economic development and intellectual property rights in the ASEAN
region. It is necessary to clarify how intellectual property systems should be used for economic
development in the ASEAN region.

Ⅱ. Research Methodology
1. Specific intellectual property research needs in the ASEAN region
In order to develop the industry in the ASEAN region, it is necessary to grasp the intellectual
property research needs in the region and establish an independent intellectual property research
institute there. In this research, based on analysis of intellectual property research needs in the
ASEAN region, we will proceed with concrete examination of establishment of a research institute.

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2. Structure of this research(1) Establishment of VIPRI and activities to date(2) Investigation of intellectual property research needs in ASEAN region (questionnaire survey)(3) Analysis of results(4) Survey of intellectual property research attitudes in each country through interviews (interview
survey)(5) Consideration from questionnaire survey and interview survey(6) Approach of intellectual property education program from developed countries(7) Overall summary

Ⅲ. Results of research
1. History of the establishment of the Vietnam Intellectual Property Institute: VIPRI and its
past achievements
The Vietnam Intellectual Property Institute (VIPRI) is a government agency forinterdisciplinary research, education, and expert opinion across the legal, economic and technicalfields. Established in 2007 by the Minister of Science and Technology, it is composed of staff withexpertise in the field of intellectual property, and is expected to play an important role in capacity
development for the creation, protection, utilization, enforcement and management of intellectual
property rights. So far, it has made a great contribution to the development of science and technology
and industrial economy in Vietnam.
2. Questionnaire design and survey results
Research on intellectual property policy and strategy in the country and intellectual property
research in the patent field were extracted as research themes with an average questionnaire response
value of 4.5 or more and high needs. In 2002, when Prime Minister Koizumi gave a speech on theadministration policy, it can be said that the situation of Japan 17 years ago is appearing in ASEAN.
It can be seen that ASEAN is making efforts to catch up with developed countries including Japan.
There is also a growing awareness of patents. ASEAN was mainly for trademark and design
applications, but it may be said that it has begun to seek to have state-of-the-art technology by
improving awareness.
The following themes were extracted as research themes with an average questionnaire resultiv

of 4.4 to 4.5: legal studies, legal studies for intellectual property law amendment, intellectual propertysystem practices, processes from examination to registration of intellectual property applications(quality, efficiency, etc.), intellectual property value evaluation, and international harmonization
research.
In addition, the following themes were extracted as research themes with an averagequestionnaire result of 4.3 or more and 4.4 or less: analytical research on intellectual property
information, industry-academia collaboration, intellectual property management in privatecompanies, new subjects for intellectual property protection, protection of inventions in areas suchas IOT and AI, factors that promote domestic application of intellectual property rights, Infringementof intellectual property rights, legal proceedings in court, etc. In addition to these research needs, we
can read from the questionnaire results that intellectual property research is important in addition to
intellectual property education and should be more important in the future.
The results of regression analysis for the main objective variables are summarized as follows.
First, discussions on the necessity of intellectual property research should be promoted in therelevant ASEAN country, and efforts should be made to develop researchers in the field of intellectual
property. In particular, it is effective to pay attention to enforcement research that is a problem in the
country. In this way, it is important to foster an image of what intellectual property research is. As an
area of particular focus, it is necessary to clarify and visualize how intellectual property rights canhelp improve corporate performance in real business fields. In addition, since ASEAN countries havetheir own research themes, for the time being, cooperation on intellectual property research may bebilateral cooperation for each country. If developed countries stick too much to profits for their own
companies, they may compete against industrial development in the ASEAN region.
In order for the ASEAN region to unite and promote intellectual property research, first of all,it is necessary to proceed with discussions with neighboring countries within the ASEAN region. As
a result, it will be possible to select a country to jointly promote intellectual property research. In thiscase, it is important to clarify the purpose of developing industries and companies in the ASEAN
region in the policy of intellectual property research.
It is also necessary for ASEAN countries to take intellectual property research as their own
issue and promote it with their own leadership. The most important issue for that was research on
intellectual property rights management in companies. To achieve this, it is important to train
researchers in the intellectual property field. Research that derives new knowledge is different fromeducation as knowledge transfer and requires a clear understanding of the differences.
Furthermore, in order to promote intellectual property research led by ASEAN countries,
research efforts to promote industry-academia collaboration are necessary. This is because ASEAN
countries still have not developed their own industrial technology, and it is necessary to establish anv

effective industry-academia collaboration system in search of new technology seeds. The uniqueresearch needs and research issues of ASEAN member countries should be respected, and thedevelopment of intellectual property researchers in the field of science and technology is required. It
is also important to develop the infrastructure necessary for research activities. In order to establish
an ASEAN Intellectual Property Research Institute in the ASEAN region in the future, it will benecessary to start by considering the research needs of each country. As a result of the discussion, it
is necessary to clarify the intellectual property research policy. In particular, there is a need forintellectual property researchers in the management field, and I think that ASEAN industry will beinterested in research to bring about growth and strengthening of companies by utilizing intellectual
property rights.
In the future, in order to establish the ASEAN Institute for Intellectual Property, it is important
to train intellectual property researchers in addition to intellectual property practitioners. It is also
necessary to discuss the establishment of the Institute for Intellectual Property, focusing on member
countries where intellectual property researchers have been nurtured. Furthermore, it is required topromote joint work with member countries in the region. In doing so, it will be particularly helpful
to promote intellectual property research by making industrial development a common issue inmember countries.

Ⅳ. Conclusions
1. Overall observation
The important thing is to think carefully about the difference between intellectual property
research and intellectual property education. ASEAN IP specialists have been steadily nurtured.
Intellectual property education for domestic universities, companies, society in general, etc. isdomestically procured and can be fully handled using their own language. This is clear from the
VIPRI example. What advanced countries should support for the development of ASEAN countries
is that IP education should be promoted as before, but support for IP research based on the needs ofeach country should be strengthened.
In order to promote the creation, protection, and utilization of intellectual property in each ASEAN
country, it is important to conduct basic research on intellectual property locally. As a future approachfrom Japan, the importance of IP research as a function different from IP education should be pointed
out. In Japan, IIP was established as a research organization separately from INPIT, which is in chargeof intellectual property education. Mainly, IIP has conducted basic research related to intellectual
property law amendment, and has utilized the research results as basic data necessary for legalviamendment. However, nowadays there are a wide range of research themes. For example, integrationof intellectual property activities and business, intellectual property activities necessary for startup,
evaluation of intellectual property value, technology trend analysis utilizing intellectual property
information, prediction of future technology, protection of intellectual property of IoT and AI
technology, standardization And intellectual property rights, M&A and intellectual property rights,
intellectual property rights and marketing, business expansion and intellectual property rights ofSMEs, and business expansion and intellectual property rights by licensing. In this way, intellectual
property research has spread to a wide variety of areas, and intellectual property research in theseareas will become increasingly important in the future. Of course, since research results can be usedas teaching materials for future intellectual property education, cooperation between intellectual
property education institutions and intellectual property research institutions is important, and anorganization for that purpose is also needed. It is important to distinguish the importance ofintellectual property research from intellectual property education. Advanced countries in Europe
and the United States are focusing on intellectual property education for ASEAN human resources
with the aim of profits for Western companies. Japan, on the other hand, understands the intellectual
property research needs of each ASEAN country, and focuses on support that allows each country toexert their own leadership and work on intellectual property research for the development of thatcountry.
2. Proposals for future activities
We should consider establishing an IP Academy one step ahead. In addition to intellectual
property education for foreign companies, the viewpoint of intellectual property education andintellectual property research for industrial development in ASEAN member countries is important.
To achieve this goal, it is important to first understand and understand intellectual property educationand intellectual property research.
I think Japan will need to support ASEAN's leadership in discussions on how IP education and
IP research should be for the development of ASEAN member states. In addition to accumulating
achievements in intellectual property research activities in each country, it is expected to establish an“Intellectual Property Research Forum” and study intellectual property research policies.
3. Further research in the future
Based on this survey, the voices were addressed that the Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam,
Malaysia, and Indonesia should be included, if the joint working group for intellectual propertyviiresearch will be established as the first step. In order to establish a joint working group, it is necessary
to conduct further research and hearing on these countries and to set up a specific process for future
consideration.
First, with the participation of five countries, the “Intellectual Property Research Forum” shouldbe established, and the first seminar should be held as soon as possible. The theme of the seminar is“Toward the Future of Intellectual Property Research.” And while thinking about what intellectual
property research is, we will use it as a place to present intellectual property research results fromASEAN. In the future, the Intellectual Property Research Forum will be expanded and developed in
10 ASEAN countries. Developed countries such as EUIPO plan to develop intellectual property
education in ASEAN to protect their own companies in developed countries. In contrast, Japan should
explain the importance of intellectual property research to ASEAN member countries and continue
to support intellectual property research necessary to foster the industry of ASEAN member countries.

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