On May 21, the Patent Office organized the “Intellectual Property and SMEs” seminar, which discussed the support provided by international intellectual property (IP) organizations to intellectual property rights (IPR) owners, as well as certain trademark protection issues, in particular - the type of label introduced in Latvia last year – certification mark.
The seminar was opened by Baiba Graube, Acting Director of the Patent Office: “The Patent Office strengthens the property rights to original and good ideas that have materialized in the form of trademarks, designs and inventions. We are working to inform as many people as possible and to make entrepreneurs aware that registration is one of the safest ways to protect their rights”.
The first presentation " IP and SMEs from a WIPO Perspective" gave Tamara Nanayakkara, Counsellor of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) IP for Business Division, explaining both the differences between different types of intellectual property protection and their characteristics, as well sharing practical examples and resources for searching for useful information, training opportunities and support for IPR holders.
During the second presentation, Sébastien Hanck, representative from the EU Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) Customers Department, spoke about support programs for small and medium-sized enterprises in the field of IP, with a focus on the 20 million EUR SME Fund “Ideas Powered for Business” created by the European Commission and EUIPO.
At the end of the seminar, Benjamin Fontaine, the IP lawyer, and partner at the Intellectual Property Law Firm Plasseraud IP, answered the question “How to protect a quality label as a trademark?”, including topics such as collective mark, geographical indications, as well as the type of labels that have recently entered Latvia - certification marks. Benjamin Fontaine looked at both - internationally known examples and examples from the Latvian market.
The target audience of the seminar was small and medium-sized enterprises, IPR holders and other interested parties.
A recording of the seminar will soon be available on the Patent Office's YouTube channel.
The seminar was organized in close cooperation with the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) and the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO).