ISSUE 01
Minister of Science and Technology Derek Hanekom (Left) and Astrid Ludin, Commissioner of CIPC (right) opened up the conference
IP VITAL FOR SUSTAINED DEVELOPMENT I
t is essential to ensure that a strong intellectual property (IP) framework is in place as South Africa moves from a resources to a knowledge-based economy, Derek Hanekom, the Minister of Science and Technology, said yesterday. The minister was making the opening address at the 3-day Creating and Leveraging Intellectual Property in Developing Countries (CLIPDC) conference in Durban yesterday. The conference is being attended by government officials, policy experts, academics and entrepreneurs from South Africa and Africa, and developing and developed countries. “Intellectual property can be an effective lever for development, particularly for a country like ours, with the commitment we have made to migrate from a resource-based economy to a knowledge-based one,” Hanekom said. “Over the years, the engine of wealth creation has been shifting from physical, tangible assets to intellectual capital, or intangible assets, he said, adding that competitive advantage was created “through the strategic management and use of IP.” Countries that had introduced strong IP protection had flourished, Hanekom said. “International benchmarking exercises clearly indicate that countries such as South Korea and China have developed their economies primarily through government intervention in their local systems of innovation to build on their competencies in manufacturing. There is a strong correlation between their economic growth and their patenting rate.”
By RAYMOND JOSEPH The IP system was an important catalyst for developing an indigenous technology by Korean companies, several of which have become global market leaders. It has also seen the country transform poor farming economy in the 1960s, with a per capita income of less than US $100 to today’s highly industrialized country with a per capita income of US $12,000. IP was a relatively new concept for many developing countries and public research institutions and South Africa had only passed enabling legislation in 2010, with the National Intellectual Property Management Office (NIPMO), subsequently set up to implement the new Act. “The introduction of this legislation was brought about by the realisation that South African publicly financed research institutions collaborate on a global scale with countries that have strong IP regimes. In cases where our IP regimen shows signs of not being watertight, IP may be lost through collaboration agreements,” Hanekom said. Failures to protect IP could result in billions of dollars in lost revenue, he said, citing the dolos, invented by East London engineer Eric Merrifield to protect harbours by dissipating wave velocity. “It was never protected and it is found all over the world today and is worth billions,” Hanekom said. Our efforts to create a strong IP regime are geared towards ensuring that such avoidable losses never again occur.”
WORD ON THE TWEET Julia Hill @MsfJuliaHill Russia’s Boris Simonov describes his country’s new system for electronic patent examination, says South Africa welcome to technology #CLIPDC Geekulcha @Geekulcha “You can’t really depend on one patent. Build a portfolio of patents” ~@mcleansibanda #clipdc Innovation Café @cafe_innovation It appears as though organisations are getting hungry for innovation through social collaboration! #CLIPDC SharonK: Editzone101 @Editzone101 Ambiguity of inventions result in bad quality inventions #clipdc
LIGHTBulb moment in a coke bottle F
or inventor Michael Suttner his eureka moment in his search to invent a low cost lighting source came when he spotted a simple water filter screwed into a plastic bottle. He realised that before him was the solution to the conundrum that brought together the different elements he had already discovered, into his uniquely African lighting solution. These included flexible, rapid charging solar panels that give 40 hours of light after eight hours of charging in sunlight and have a life of four to five years, plus a micro lithium ion battery. “I saw the filter fitted into the water bottle and everything I had been investigating and thinking about suddenly crystallised in that moment,” says Suttner. He already knew the World Health Organisation stats of how the poorest people in Africa, with an average salary is $1 to $2 a day, were spending 20 percent of their daily income on lighting, equating to a mind boggling R380 billion annual spend. And, again according to the WHO, how 2 million
By RAYMOND JOSEPH people were dying each year of pneumonia induced by paraffin fumes. It also answered two other big problems Suttner, a mechanical engineer by training, was trying to solve: how to distribute his product without incurring huge manufacture and transport costs? Known as The Lightie, his simple, but ingenious, light is designed to fit into an easily available receptacle – the ubiquitous plastic cool drink and water bottles found all over Africa. His aim is to produce the product in South Africa and is working on a cost price of $2 to $3 and a retail price of $8 to $10 making it, with the savings on paraffin and candles, very affordable to even the poorest. “Coca Cola is available all over Africa, so there is no shortage of plastic bottles and I also hope to do a distribution deal with them for the actual product,” said Suttner, who has been chosen to pitch his product for seed funding at this week’s CLIPDC conference.
Julia Hill @MsfJuliaHill #BRICS #IP offices take the stage at #CLIPDC. Can @the_dti use this cooperation to #FixPatentLaw in South Africa to promote access to meds? Socially Acceptable @SocialyAceptble The patent system is meant to be an enabler says Mclean Sibanda at#Clipdc Mwena tweets @MwenaFilu What makes a quality patent: phillips and sasol’s view an eyeopener plus practical examples on good and bad patents #CLIPDC The Innovation Hub @InnovHub #clipdc Our CEO @mcleansibanda is currently moderating a panel “a corporate view of what makes a quality patent” #IP Geekulcha @Geekulcha Patents are an expensive process but are a great way of protecting your product #clipdc Given Mavhase @Giv_Mavhase “A strong IP regime boosts investment” Min of Science & Technology D. Hanekom #CLIPDC Southern Sun Elangeni Hotel Durban Socially Acceptable @SocialyAceptble Traditional or indigenous knowledge is an imporatant part of Intellectual Property in a country explains Min Derek Hanekom at#CLIPDC IT Varsity @ITVarsity Looking forward to an exciting few days at opening of #CLIPDCbeginning today! Delegates from the world will connect and collaborate with us
Michael Suttner with his invention, in front of a shack, the kind of home in which many of his target audience live
BRICS in the wall ... a five nation video hook-up during an interactive session at the CLIPDC conference yesterday looked at the different initiatives being undertaken by BRICS patent offices, as well as areas of potential co-operation. The high-powered panel consisted of (from top left) Boris Simonov, Director General of Federal Service for IP, Russia, Denise Gregory, Director of Cooperation for Development, INPI, Brazil, Chaitanya Prasad, Controller General of Patents, Designs and Trademarks, India and Wu Kai, DG of the International Cooperation Department of SIPO, China. Astrid Ludin, Commissioner CIPC of South Africa was also on the panel.
WHAT MAKES A QUALITY PATENT ? N
ot too complex – and with an extremely clear scope. These were two of the key criteria named by industry players yesterday, when asked what makes for a good quality patent. Speaking during the panel discussion, A Corporate View of What Makes a Quality Patent, three industry leaders also cited the value of a patent, as well as its legal and protection value as key criteria which they apply in considering patents. The three - Roy Waldron (Chief Patent Counsel, Pfizer Corporation), Maaike Van Velzen (IP & Standards General Manager, Phillips Group Innovation, Netherlands) and Morne Barradas (Lead IP Legal Advisor: Risk and Compliance, Sasol Group Services, Sasolburg, South Africa – shared their insights with moderator McLean Sibanda, CEO of The Innovation Hub of GautengProvince and President of the International Association of Science Parks. “There are many aspects to what makes a quality patent,” said Van Velzen. “It is also about the portfolio that it is a part of. Generally you would have a portfolio of patents protecting your innovations, starting with the broad scope patents, going through to the more specific embodiments that you really need to make the invention work.
By SUE SEGAR “The quality of the patent is, for example, in how the scope is in relation to the invention you have made. There must be clear and concise terminology used – it must be very clear what the scope is and what you are trying to protect and that there is true enablement; that there is information in the patent on how you would work the invention and how it really could be embodied in the product in the end. “Those are important aspects of quality of patents. Looking at portfolio, it is also important to look into the geographic spread. Usually we would look into portfolios that have a global spread as those are the ones that are most valuable in terms of IP protection.” Barradas said that, from Sasol’s perspective, a key factor to consider would be the value connected to that patent. “This includes the legal value - so it must be an enforceable patent. It must also meet the novelty and inventive steps as these are obviously major patentability criteria. “It must also have protection value – so that it actually protects your technology in relation to your business strategy. “Where exactly they fit into your portfolio would determine which are your more valuable and less valuable patents.” Another factor to consider in terms
of patents, Barradas continued, was the commercial value of a patent. “One must look at where the patent paves the way for joining efforts and joint research collaboration or partnering. It can also assist in licensing and cross-licensing when it is addressing a specific competitor problem.” Waldron painted a picture of a complex set of patenting needs in the pharmaceutical arena. “When we look at the particulars of the pharmaceutical sector, we start right at the beginning: we work with small molecules and biologics that have therapeutic effects. We don’t just develop these … we also devise mechanisms for introducing them into the body, formulations and new ways of using biologics, all aimed at having a therapeutic effect.” A good patent in the pharmaceutical industry had to address the entire process of development, Waldron said. “A patent is a right to exclude competitors from practicing your technological advance for a certain period of time. That right to exclude is only as good as the environment, particularly the legal environment, in which it finds itself… A quality patent is a patent that can stand up in court – valid and enforceable and results in measures that actually compel a competitor to not reproduce your invention at the same time as you are producing it.”
IP can benefit small players too I
t is essential for Intellectual Property systems throughout the world to strive to benefit not only the “large” players but also the “small” players in industry, because small and medium enterprises are the future economic engine of the US, Europe and the rest of the world. This was the strong view put across by Mark Guetlich (Senior Counsel for International Policy and Government Affairs, US Patent and Trademark Office) yesterday. Guetlich was speaking during the panel discussion entitled The Effect of the National Patent System on the Perceived Investment Value of a Patent at the CLIPDC Conference, currently underway in Durban. ”I cannot emphasise enough the importance of accommodating an Intellectual Property system, copyrights, trademarks, industrial design and patents … all for the benefit of large players and small players, not favouring one over the other, for procurement and for enforcement. “It is a very delicate balance but it is one that is essential because small medium enterprises are the economic engine of the US in the future,” Guetlich said. “Supporting this innovation cycle is what we are fundamentally about. It is why we made changes to the American Invents Act, to finetune the US system.” Guetlich, who shared a platform with Stephen Sammut (Professor at the Wharton School of Business and Burrill Venture Partner, James Pooley (Deputy Director-General: Innovation and Technology Sector at the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) and Elena Zdravkova (Senior Manager, Patents and Designs, Companies and Intellectual Property Commission, South Africa.) Guetlich, who spoke extensively about the recent (March 2013) reconstitution of the US patent laws into America’s new American Invents Act, said the changes had developed over “several decades of discussion” in the US. “It is not something that happened turning on a quick discussion. Much debate and consultation and effort went into it. After years of public and legislative debate, the US did not change the fundamental aspects of the Constitution, but it did update something very important that the US has developed which is that, for the first time ever, they converted to a First to File system. “This now brings all countries in the world together in alignment and fundamentally on the same page. No longer is there a US First Mark Guetlich to Invent system.
Stephen Sammut
By SUE SEGAR “We are all First to File systems. That opens up an opportunity that is significant across all countries. “Every country is developing its own national IP systems but we must also be aware of the world-wide multi-national environment that we live in that is part of a world-wide economy. The alignment of laws must exist for that multi-national economic environment to exist.” Guetlich said as the US developed its AIA, a number of issues had come to light: “It is no longer something that is perceived as only constructed for large industry. One of the key components of the AIA is to level the playing field for large enterprise as well as the small inventor and we also take specific account of the micro entity, the individual inventor. One key aspect of that is the fee system that graduates those three levels. “Fundamental aspects like this are absolutely critical to make the patent system, and the Intellectual Property system accessible and available to all inventors and all innovators.” Guetlich said the changes were the first made in the system in 150 years. “So it is not a constant evolution. It is a very studied process and we encourage South Africa to participate in that studied process and we look forward to that continued discussion together.” The Pretoria-based Zdravkova said that, in applying principles developed n the US in South Africa, it was crucial to consider the differences in economic development. “Nevertheless, some of those principles have helped us as we move to change our law in such a way that we can reap economic benefits for all citizens.”
Protecting indigenous knowledge T
h e hijacking of rooibos and hoodia b y f oreign companies highlights the n e e d t o protect indigenous knowledge and p l a n t s , says traditional medical practitioner E ph ra h i m Mabena. M a b e na heads up the Mamelodib a s e d Mothong Heritage Trust, which h a s p a r tnered with several government d e p a rt m ents and academic institutions to p ro t e c t and exploit indigenous knowledge. T h e Cosmeceutical collaboration has re s u l t e d in a pilot project that has seen the c re a t i o n of a range of cosm etics, including s u n s c re en and wrinkle creams, made from i n d i g e n o us plants. T h e project, which is showcasing its p ro d u c t s at this week’s CLIPDC, has already s e e n f i ve students receiving bursaries to s t u d y a g riculture and has created 80 short t e rm c o mmunity jobs collecting plants and c l e a ri n g a site to establish an indigenous p l a n t n u rsery. “T h e government started the projects b e c a u s e they wanted indigenous knowledge h o l d e rs to work with educational i n s t i t u t i ons,” says Mabena. Among those
By RAY JOSEPH collaborating with t h e M a m e l o d i c o m m u n i t y in the pilot proje c t a re t h e C S I R , t h e departments of Scie n c e a n d Te c h n o l o g y a n d Agriculture and the u n i v e rs i t i e s o f P re t o ri a , Cape Town and KwaZ u l u - N a t a l . “In the beginn i n g pe o pl e w e re v e ry worried that their i n d i g e n o u s k n o w l e d g e would be stolen beca u s e o f e x p l o i t a t i o n t h a t happened in the pas t , b u t n o w t h e y c a n s e e there is nothing to w o rry a b o u t a n d h o w they can benefit,” s a y s M a b e n a . “We a re learning lots about p ro c e s s i n g , p a c k a g i n g and marketing our p ro d u c t s a n d p ro t e c t i n g our intellectual prop e rt y . ” He said they ha d l e a rn e d “a l o t f ro m hoodia” – a cactu s i n d i g e n o u s t o S o u t h Africa that was wi d e l y e x p l o i t e d w i t h o u t the Khoisan, who ha d u s e d i t f o r c e n t u ri e s , benefitting. “This project h a s a rm e d u s w i t h t h e knowledge to pro t e c t o u rs e l v e s , ” s a y s Mabena. “But it i s s t i l l g o i n g t o b e a long process becau s e l o t s o f i n d i g e n o u s knowledge holders c a n n o t re a d o r w ri t e . ”
Hoodia parviflora
WELCOME TO THE DELEGATES
Power to the PeoPle C
h ri s t iaan Taljaard has been an inventor m o s t of his life – and now he’s set his s i g h t s o n producing low cost solar energy s o l u t i o n s to bring light and power to poor h o u s e h o lds across Africa. O t h e r products under d evelopment are s o l a r p o wered TVs, fridges and stoves and h i s pro d ucts currently use 54 percent local c o n t e n t , with a target to take this up to a m i n i m u m of 75 percent. A n d an important part of the strategy o f h i s c ompany, Ecovest, is to also develop a m o d e l that turns small businesses – like s p a z a s h ops – into suppliers and agents for h i s p ro d ucts. “We did our research and set out a b u s i n e s s case, and then we made the product f i t . T h e entire process was demand driven,” s a i d Ta l jaard. “We have moved beyond the d e v e l o pment stage and are now into the g ro w t h stage.” “W h at we have set out to do is to deal w i t h p rimary needs using micro energy s o l u t i o n s for lighting, heating and cooking a n d o u r target is people living off grid and w e d e a l with primary needs,” says Taljaard. I n S outh Africa there are hundreds o f s e t t l ements without access to power, w i t h i n habitants dependent on candles
By RAY JOSEPH for lighting and pa ra f f i n o r w o o d f i re s f o r cooking, he says. “In Africa 600 m i l l i o n pe o p l e u s e c a n d l e s for lighting and po o r S o u t h A f ri c a n s c a n easily spend R100 a m o n t h o n c a n d l e s . “Our solution entails fitting a five watt solar panel on the roof and a controller inside your shack. The light costs R495 and after six months it’s paid for and then your lighting is free from then on. The TV kit, which includes the TV, a solar harvest device and a battery system costs R3730, while a solar powered fridge will cost around R4,500. Part of the Ecovest strategy is to create micro entrepreneurs. So if you can’t afford the full kit, you can buy just the light and swop out the depleted battery for a charged one at the local spaza shop – as you would a gas canister – for a mere R1.50. The systems, which are all metal, can be manufactured off grid from a kit anywhere in the world and Taljaard hopes to interest African governments in setting up plants at a cost of around R475,000. “Everything can b e m a n u f a c tu r e d o n s i t e without the need for p o w e r. ”
Christiaan Taljaard, inventor of low cost solutions to power Africa
Lessons from global entrepreneurs T
h e l ast session of the day at any c o n f erence traditionally host the least e x c i t i n g speakers or thought-leaders. That c e rt a i n l y was not the case at the end of the f i rs t d a y of the CLIPDC Conf erence. The distinguished panel included P ro f e s s o rs Robert Langer and Alexander K I i b a n o v who joined the Conference via v i d e o l i nk from the Massachusetts Institute o f Te c h n ology (MIT). Moderating the session was conference cochair Sherry Knowles – Principal of Knowles IP Strategies and also on the panel was Professor Dennis Liotta of Emory University. T h e objective of the session: To u n d e r s t a nd how great entrepreneurs made g l o b a l impacts through their consistent l e a rn i n g and development. The panellists related their own first foray into their related industries and the journeys they had taken to create products or ideas that benefitted many and, prompted by the great facilitation of Knowles, shared wisdom
Professor Dennis Liotta of Emory University
By NAZAREEN EBRAHIM to emerging and aspiring entrepreneurs in Africa and the Developing World. Langer was clea r i n h i s a d v i c e o n h o w to put together a c o m p a n y i f o n e i s a n aspiring entreprene u r. “Yo u w a n t t o s t a r t building that ecosy s t e m . S t a rt t o b u i l d a plan for the future . Try t o g e t p e o p l e t o make investments i n S o u t h A f ri c a . Also strengthen your un i v e rs i t i e s ; t re m e n d o u s innovation comes ou t o f u n i v e rs i t i e s w h e re learning and devel o pm e n t i s ro b u s t a n d drives entrepreneurs h i p. ” Klibanov was equally s t ro n g in his response. “Wi t h pu b l i c po l i c y a n d Government agenci e s , y o u w a n t t o s t a r t today. The idea tha t y o u ru n w i t h d o e s n ’ t have to be somethin g y o u i n v e n t e d . Yo u c a n identify technologie s d e v e l o pe d b y o t h e rs ; identify that unme t n e e d a n d c re a t e t h e solution. Ensure th a t y o u h a v e a b u s i n e s s plan and then iden t i f y t h e b e s t p e o pl e t o
w o rk t h i s s o l u t i o n . A l w a y s k e e p a n e y e o n t h e pro c e s s , h a v e a n e x i t s t ra t e g y a n d m o s t i m p o rt a n t l y , p ro t e c t y o u r I P. ” Liotta, who was behind the development o f o n e o f t h e w o rl d ’ s m o s t s u c c e s s f u l a n t i re t ro v i ra l d ru g s i n t h e l a t e 1 9 8 0 s i n t h e midst of the Aids pandemic (and quipped t h a t i t c a m e a b o u t t h ro u g h y e t a n o t h e r m i d - l i f e c ri s i s ) , p ro v i d e d a m o re d e d i c a t e d a p p ro a c h . “S e t u p a c l u s t e r o f d e v e l o p m e n t u n i t s a ro u n d w h a t y o u a re d o i n g . Yo u a re n o t a s k i n g y o u r f a c u l t y t o b u y i t o u t , b u t ra t h e r t o i n v e s t i n t o i t . T h e o n l y c a v e a t : Yo u n e e d a f o c u s . Yo u n e e d t o h a v e a f o c u s a n d o u t o f t h i s , t h e i m pa c t c o u l d b e s i g n i f i c a n t . ” M o d e ra t o r K n o w l e s w ra p p e d u p t h e p a n e l d i s c u s s i o n b y s h a ri n g h e r e x p e ri e n c e s f ro m w o r k i n g t h ro u g h p a t e n t l a w s a n d p o l i c y m a k i n g . “We n e e d i n n o v a t i o n , w e n e e d n e w d ru g s . Yo u h a v e t o h a v e l a w s t o p ro t e c t i n n o v a t o rs a n d t h a t ’ s w h y h a v i n g s t ro n g l a w s m e a n s b e t t e r a c c e s s t o b e t t e r medicine.”
minister calls for decisive action T
he era of resource based economies was drawing to a close and it will require a major rethink by the developing world if they are to become knowledge based economies, Rob Davies, the Minister o f Tr a d e a n d I n d u s t r i e s s a i d l a s t n i g h t . “It is not only a question of thought, but also the necessity to act with decisiveness to ensure that our economies can derive much required growth and the employment levels to combat poverty and inequality,” he said. Davies was addressing delegates at a glittering banquet on the opening night of the Creating and Leveraging Intellectual Property in Developing Countries (CLIPDC) conference in Durban. The conference was “crucial” to the developing world as it was yet to realise the wealth that innovation and creativity could bring to economies and also act as a spur to growth, he said. The conference has brought together an eclectic mix of government policy makers, academics and entrepreneurs from both the developing world and developed world. They will spend three days networking, learning and trading ideas around the issues of intellectual property (IP). Davies announced the launch of a new C I P C I P Po r t a l , w h i c h w a s i n t e n d e d t o become a “market place for innovators, traders and sellers of intellectual property. He also announced the launch of
Rob Davies, Minister of Trade and Industries
By RAYMOND JOSEPH t h e Te c h n o - P r e n e u r s P r o g r a m m e , w h i c h is a partnership between the CIPC and t h e Te c h n o l o g y I n n o v a t i o n A g e n c y ( T I A and will allow innovators in tech and other sectors to register their ideas on a database. Entrepreneurs whose ideas are accepted will receive support to develop them further and they will also be able to apply for funding to help them commercialise these ideas. “The two offices will also support and capacitate these innovators – or potential innovators – in IP development, management, and also fund them where necessary.” One problem was that developing countries were adopting IP systems from the developed world that were not in line with their economic and developmental realities. “ Fo r I P t o b e s u c c e s s f u l l y u s e d a s a power tool for economic and social growth, it is important that the power of partnerships between government, industry and the economic sector at the core of enabling instruments,” the minister said. This should include strengthening capacity for policy coordination and the establishment of sound IP systems and was relevant because governments spent significant amounts on research and academic institutions. “It is important that what is produced in research should be protected and
commercialised to ensure improvement in our economies and innovation.” The 5th BRICS Heads of State Summit in Durban earlier this year endorsed a wide r a n g i n g Tr a d e a n d I n v e s t m e n t C o o p e r a t i o n Agreement that made specific provision f o r I P, D a v i e s s a i d . T h i s i n c l u d e d : * enhancing information exchange on IPR legislation and enforcement; and *promoting cooperation between IPR offices and jointly developing capacity programmes. The DTI released the Draft National Policy on Intellectual Property 2013 in September, which was intended, among other things, to bring about an economic environment conducive to creating economic opportunities, developing a technology transfer strategy to build domestic opportunity and to engender confidence and attract investment. “Core to this policy is also realising that the dynamics are changing so fast that it is necessary to ensure that we provide the necessary enabling environment for better opportunities and innovation, Davies said, adding: “This policy also encourages coordination between the government departments, agencies, academic and research institutions in the sphere of IUP to ensure that there is unity of implementation and response to emerging challenges for an improved environment for innovation and socio-economic prosperity.”
glitz and glamoUR
This newsletter was produced by the team at HIPPO. www.hippocommunications.com