On February 2, 2012, Tilleke & Gibbins will host member companies of the Singapore-Thai Chamber of Commerce for a luncheon talk, “Top 10 IP Mistakes SMEs Make and How You Can Avoid Them,” by Alan Adcock, Partner and Deputy Director of the firm’s IP group.
SMEs are usually well aware of the media coverage of chronic intellectual property problems in Asia. But what is the reality on the ground? Problems clearly exist. Fast-moving consumer goods are widely counterfeited. Former employees have stolen trade secrets to compete unfairly. Patent owners have found their patents invalidated by competitors. Exports of fake goods travel across the globe to both developed and developing markets. “Shadow companies” purporting to be branches of legitimate multinationals are established by unscrupulous traders. Competitors try to register elements of foreign products as their own IP. All of these things happen.
But conversely, many companies that have invested in the right preventative strategies have had tremendous success introducing their IP to Asia. These companies find that they do not necessarily need to invest heavily in the back-end problems of enforcement because they have successfully tackled the issues early on.
This Singapore-Thai Chamber of Commerce event, held at the Bangkok office of Tilleke & Gibbins, will identify the most frequent mistakes SMEs make in their IP strategies in Asia and will offer practical proven tips on how to avoid making mistakes others have made before.
To further illustrate these issues, the discussion will be followed by a visit to the Tilleke & Gibbins Museum of Counterfeit Goods. In the museum, participants will have a chance to view hundreds of counterfeit products displayed alongside their genuine counterparts. With guided tours from Tilleke & Gibbins attorneys, the museum visit will offer new perspective on the extent and consequences of counterfeiting in Thailand.
For more information on this event, please contact Suthatip Anantapornsuk at [email protected].