Module No.

4-5

Intellectual Property
Introduction

ENGR. JOEL D. MANACMUL

Department of Engineering and Architecture
Bataan Heroes College

This module or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner
whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher except for educational
purposes but with a citation to this source.
For Permission: Contact Bataan Heroes College, Roman Super Hi-way, Balanga City, Bataan,
Philippines

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Course Information
Course Title : Introduction to Intellectual Property
Program : Business & Technology
Course Code : CPE 418
Credit Units : 1 units
Pre-requisite/s : None

Instructor Information
Name : Engr. Joel D. Manacmul
Contact Information
Contact Number : 0928-142-1172
Facebook : Joel Manacmul
Email : hoel07@gmail.com

Course Description
This module will introduce the concept of intellectual property and explain how it creates value.
You will learn about the major forms of intellectual property protection like copyright,
trademarks, and patents, as well as alternative forms of intellectual property protection.

Intended Learning Outcomes

At the end of this course, the students must be able to:
1. Analyse the advanced principles of intellectual property law, undertake self-directed legal
research at an intermediate level, and evaluate complex legal information.
2. Apply intellectual property law principles to complex legal problems through individual
work.
3. Structure and sustain concise and cohesive written arguments for a legal audience.
4. Conduct legal research.
5. Reflect on their abilities to effectively undertake work as a legal practitioner.

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Course Schedule
Learning
Week Topic
Outcomes
1. Introduction to Intellectual Property
 What is Intellectual property
 Why does IP Matter

Week 1  Types of intellectual property 1

Module 1 o Copyright, Patent, Industrial
design, Geographical
Indications

2. More explanation of
Week 2  Copyright
Module 2 o What can be protected using
copyright?
o What rights does copyright give me? 2
 Patent
o What kind of protection does a
patent offer?
o Is a patent valid in every country?
3 Industrial
o What kind of protection does an
industrial design right offer?
o What kind of products can benefit from
Week 3 industrial design protection?
3
Module 3  Geographical
o What rights does a geographical
indication provide?
o For what type of products can
geographical indications be used?

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Bataan Heroes College

MIDTERM ASSESSMENT
4 Trade Secret
o What kind of information is protected
by trade secrets?
Week 4 o What kind of protection does a trade
4
Module 4 secret offer?
o How can I obtain certified proof of
existence for my confidential
information?
5 World Intellectual Property
Week 5
Organisation (WIPO) 5
Module 5

Week 6 FINAL ASSESSMENT 1-5

References
WIPO – https://www.wipo.int/publications/en/details.jsp?id=4528
Intellectual Property - https://courses.lumenlearning.com/wmopen-
introductiontobusiness/chapter/intellectual-property-2/
o https://www.upcounsel.com/copyright
o https://www.investopedia.com/terms/p/patent.asp
o https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Industrial_design
o WIPO

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Engr. Joel D. Manacmul
Bataan Heroes College

Module 04 Trade Secret

In general, to qualify as a trade secret, the information must be:
 commercially valuable because it is secret,
 be known only to a limited group of persons, and
 be subject to reasonable steps taken by the rightful holder of the information to keep it secret,
including the use of confidentiality agreements for business partners and employees.
The unauthorized acquisition, use or disclosure of such secret information in a manner contrary
to honest commercial practices by others is regarded as an unfair practice and a violation of the
trade secret protection.

What kind of information is protected by trade secrets?

In general, any confidential business information which provides an enterprise a competitive
edge and is unknown to others may be protected as a trade secret. Trade secrets encompass both
technical information, such as information concerning manufacturing processes, pharmaceutical
test data, designs and drawings of computer programs, and commercial information, such as
distribution methods, list of suppliers and clients, and advertising strategies.

A trade secret may be also made up of a combination of elements, each of which by itself is in
the public domain, but where the combination, which is kept secret, provides a competitive
advantage.

Other examples of information that may be protected by trade secrets include financial
information, formulas and recipes and source codes.

What kind of protection does a trade secret offer?

Depending on the legal system, the legal protection of trade secrets forms part of the general
concept of protection against unfair competition or is based on specific provisions or case law on
the protection of confidential information.

While a final determination of whether trade secret protection is violated or not depends on the
circumstances of each individual case, in general, unfair practices in respect of secret
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information include industrial or commercial espionage, breach of contract and breach of

confidence.

A trade secret owner, however, cannot stop others from using the same technical or commercial
information, if they acquired or developed such information independently by themselves
through their own R&D, reverse engineering or marketing analysis, etc. Since trade secrets are
not made public, unlike patents, they do not provide “defensive” protection, as being prior art.
For example, if a specific process of producing Compound X has been protected by a trade
secret, someone else can obtain a patent or a utility model on the same invention, if the inventor
arrived at that invention independently.

How can I obtain certified proof of existence for my confidential information?

WIPO PROOF may be used as a step to preserve the confidentiality of your information. With a
special digital encryption system, it time stamps your confidential information without being
stored outside your sphere. The encrypted proof, which cannot be modified, can certify the
existence of the work at a certain point in time, thus providing a complementary protective
measure for your trade secrets.

How are trade secrets protected?

Contrary to patents, trade secrets are protected without registration, that is, trade secrets require

no procedural formalities for their protection. A trade secret can be protected for an unlimited

period of time, unless it is discovered or legally acquired by others and disclosed to the public.

For these reasons, the protection of trade secrets may appear to be particularly attractive for

certain companies. There are, however, some conditions for the information to be considered a

trade secret. Compliance with such conditions may turn out to be more difficult and costly than it

would appear at a first glance.

Activity 04 Instruction to be post on the Google classroom

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Bataan Heroes College

What are the requirements for trade secret protection?

In order for information to be protected as trade secret, it shall meet the following criteria. The

information must be secret (i.e., it is not generally known among, or readily accessible, to circles

that normally deal with the kind of information in question). Absolute secrecy is not required.

For example, trade secrets can be kept by several parties, as long as it is not known to other

persons working in the field. It must have actual or potential commercial value because it is

secret. It must have been subject to reasonable steps by the rightful holder of the information to

keep it secret (e.g., through confidentiality agreements). While the “reasonable” steps may

depend on the circumstances of each case, marking confidential documents, placing physical and

electronic restrictions to access trade secret information, introducing a systematic monitoring

system and raising awareness of employees are the measures taken to safeguard trade secrets.

Example

A company develops a process for the manufacturing of its products that allows it to produce its

goods in a more cost-effective manner. Such a process provides the enterprise a competitive edge

over its competitors. The enterprise in question may therefore value its know-how as a trade

secret and would not want competitors to learn about it. It makes sure that only a limited number

of people know the secret, and those who know it are made well aware that it is confidential.

When dealing with third parties or licensing its know-how, the enterprise signs confidentiality

agreements to ensure that all parties know that the secret information must not be disclosed. The

company should also take reasonable measures to keep the know-how secret, such as putting

access control and security measures in place and establishing internal procedures for systematic

controlling and monitoring of trade secret information. In such circumstances, the

misappropriation of the information by a competitor or by any third party would be considered a

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violation of the enterprise's trade secrets. However, such measures will only be effective if the

products could not easily be “reverse engineered” by competitors.

What are the rights conferred by trade secrets?

In general, trade secret protection confers owners the right to prevent the information lawfully

within their control from being disclosed, acquired or used by others without their consent in a

manner contrary to honest commercial practice.

While the determination of such practices depends ultimately on the circumstances of each

individual case, in general, unfair practices in respect of secret information

include industrial or commercial espionage, breach of contract, breach of

confidence and inducement to breach. It further includes the use or disclosure of a trade secret

by a third party who knew, or was grossly negligent in failing to know, that such practices were

involved in the acquisition of the confidential information.

In consequence, the use of a trade secret by a person who acquired that information in

a legitimate business transaction without negligence is not deemed illegal. For example, a

competitor may purchase a product, examine the construction or composition of the product and

extract the secret knowledge embedded in the product (so-called reverse engineering). Such act

is not violation of trade secret protection.

Is it possible to sell and license trade secrets?

Trade secrets are property rights and can be assigned or licensed to other persons. The holder of

trade secret has the right to authorize a third party to access and use the trade secret information.

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Bataan Heroes College

However, due to the secret nature of trade secret information, it is not always easy for others to

determine whether the information concerned meets the conditions for trade secret protection.

Therefore, compared with a patent, it is more difficult to transfer and license confidential

information and to resolve disputes which may arise. Since a potential licensee needs to access

the trade secret information in order to assess its value or utility, a non-disclosure or

confidentiality agreement needs to be signed between the potential licensor and licensee. Further,

in order to maintain the secrecy of trade secret information, a trade secret licensor should require

a licensee to take reasonable steps to keep that information secret.

Assessment 04 Instruction to be post on the Google classroom

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Module 05 World Intellectual Property Organization

The World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) aims to

promote intellectual property rights (IPRs) worldwide. In 2000, it
established an inter-governmental committee to address IPR issues
relating to genetic resources, traditional knowledge and folklore, including how to protect
traditional knowledge from misappropriation and how to share benefits from commercialisation
equitably. The Committee has developed a set of Policy Objectives and Principles for protecting
traditional knowledge. It has also explored disclosure requirements for genetic resources and
traditional knowledge in patent applications.

Progress has been very slow. Developing countries have repeatedly insisted they need a legally
binding treaty to protect traditional knowledge, while industrialised countries have opposed this.
In 2010, the WIPO General Assembly extended the Inter-Governmental Committee’s mandate
for two years, and set it the objective of reaching agreement on a text for an international legal
instrument (or instruments) which will ensure effective protection for traditional knowledge ,
traditional cultural expressions /folklore and genetic resources.

The Committee has done some good technical work examining traditional knowledge protection
from an intellectual property perspective. However, indigenous and local communities have
raised some concerns.

 Indigenous and local communities cannot actively participate in the policy process. Although
they can make statements, these are usually only allowed at the end of each session, and
governments have no obligation to take indigenous concerns on board.

 WIPO negotiators are legal experts from patent offices whose main reference points are exiting
intellectual property right models, rather than the customary laws of indigenous and local
communities. Although WIPO has conducted studies on customary laws, and its principles
recognise their importance, industrialised countries have insisted that traditional knowledge
protection should be consistent with existing IPR standards, which in many cases conflict with
those customary laws.

 WIPO has no mandate to promote indigenous peoples’ wellbeing or to conserve biodiversity. Its
policy focuses on protecting only the intellectual component of knowledge systems, and not
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rights over the associated genetic resources, landscapes, cultural and spiritual values and
customary laws. It recognises national sovereignty over natural resources, but not customary
rights over bio-genetic resources.

 Outside the Inter-Governmenal Committee, the WIPO seeks to promote and harmonise western
IPR standards through global treaties, which can threaten the rights of indigenous and local
communities over their biocultural heritage.

Activity 05 Instruction to be post on the Google classroom

WIPO — A Brief History

The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) has a long and interesting past. Browse
some of the key milestones in the Organization's history.

1883 – Paris Convention

The Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial

Property is born. This international agreement is the
first major step taken to help creators ensure that their
intellectual works are protected in other countries. The
need for international protection of intellectual
property (IP) became evident when foreign exhibitors
refused to attend the International Exhibition of
Inventions in Vienna, Austria in 1873 because they
were afraid their ideas would be stolen and exploited
commercially in other countries. The Paris Convention
covers:

1886 – Berne Convention

Following a campaign by French writer Victor Hugo

and his Association Littéraire et Artistique
Internationale the Berne Convention for the
Protection of Literary and Artistic Works is agreed.
The aim is to give creators the right to control and
receive payment for their creative works on an
international level. Works protected include:
 novels, short stories, poems, plays;
 songs, operas, musicals, sonatas; and
 drawings, paintings, sculptures, architectural works.

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1891 – Madrid Agreement

With the adoption of the Madrid Agreement, the first

international IP filing service is launched: the Madrid
System for the international registration of marks. In
the decades that follow, a full spectrum
of international IP services will emerge under the
auspices of what will later become WIPO.

1893 – BIRPI established

The two secretariats set up to administer the Paris and

Berne Conventions combine to form WIPO's
immediate predecessor, the United International
Bureaux for the Protection of Intellectual Property –
best known by its French acronym, BIRPI. The
organization, with a staff of seven, is based in Berne,
Switzerland.

1970 – BIRPI becomes WIPO

The Convention establishing the World Intellectual
Property Organization (WIPO) comes into force and
BIRPI is thus transformed to become WIPO. The
newly established WIPO is a member state-led,
intergovernmental organization, with its headquarters
in Geneva, Switzerland.

1974 – WIPO joins the UN

WIPO joins the United Nations (UN) family of

organizations, becoming a specialized agency of the
UN. All member states of the UN are entitled, though
not obliged, to become members of the specialized
agencies.

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Bataan Heroes College

1978 – PCT System launched

The PCT international patent system begins operation.

The PCT expands rapidly to become WIPO's largest
international IP filing system today.

1994 – AMC established

The WIPO Arbitration and Mediation Center is

established. The Center offers alternative dispute
resolution services to help solve international
commercial disputes between private parties.

1998 – WIPO Academy opens its doors

The WIPO Academy is established to provide

general and specialized courses on IP. Academy
courses are interdiscplinary in their approach and
targeted at a wide range of IP professionals.

2007 – WIPO Development Agenda adopted

WIPO formally adopts its Development Agenda,

with the aim of ensuring that development issues are
taken into consideration throughout the
Organization's work.

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Assessment 05 Instruction to be post on the Google classroom

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