Intellectual Property in Taiwan – An Overview
Posted on Wednesday, September 1, 2010
Taiwan is among the most active and important countries in the global intellectual property (IP) industry. In major IP markets like the United States, Japan and Korea, Taiwan consistently ranks among the top five filers. And in 2009, organizations and inventors from around the world filed for nearly 80,000 patents at Taiwan's Intellectual Property Office (TIPO). Taiwan's "miraculous" economic growth and transition from small goods manufacturer to a knowledge-intensive, high tech industry leader has made it an integral IP market for many global organizations. As a result, here we provide a broad, (but not exhaustive) overview of IP in Taiwan—its history, patent fundamentals, key figures, statistics and more—to help these organizations and inventors understand more about this influential and growing market.
Origins
The origins of the Taiwan IP system can be traced back as early as 1911 China, with the establishment of "Handicrafts Incentives Provisional Regulations" (獎勵工藝品暫行章程) by the Ministry of Commerce & Industry. In 1940, looking to improve the existing laws into a more formal system, the Ministry of Economic Affairs researched the patent laws of ten foreign countries and, after four years of debate, discussion and revision, promulgated the first official patent law in 1944. The law was never fully instituted, however, as in 1949 the Nationalist government was forced to retreated to Taiwan.
In Taiwan, IP issues were managed by the National Bureau of Standards (NBS), and the offices were initially located in Tainan before moving to Taipei in 1972. After a series of major revisions to IP law in the early 1990s, the NBS was reorganized and renamed the Intellectual Property Office in 1999. Since the reorganization, the office has made great strides in expanding the scope and detail of IP laws and regulations, and in tandem with the economic growth of Taiwan, the Taiwan IP industry is now a mature and vital part of Taiwan's economy, covering Patents, Trademarks, Copyrights, Trade Secrets and Integrated Circuit Layouts.
Patent System Fundamentals
Much of Taiwan's patent system was drafted with consideration of foreign laws and policies, so the Taiwan system retains thematic similarities to patent systems around world. Taiwan runs a "First-to-File" system and any natural (living) person or entity may file for any of three types of patents:
Invention Patents
For "any creation of technical concepts by utilizing the rules of nature," (Taiwan Patent Act Article 21). The term of exclusivity is 20 years.
Utility Model Patents
For "any creation of technical concepts by utilizing the rules of nature, in respect of the form, construction or installation of an article," (Article 93). The term of exclusivity is 10 years.
Design Patents
For "any creation made in respect of the shape, pattern, color or combination thereof of an article through visual appeal," (Article109). The term of exclusivity is 12 years.
The major distinction between an Invention Patent and Utility Model Patent is in patentable subject matter. Invention Patent protection covers a wider range of subjects including devices, methods, substances and biological materials. The scope of protection offered by Utility Model Patents is limited to devices (including their shape, structure and installation).
The Taiwan Intellectual Property Office
The main governing body for IP-related issues is the Taiwan Intellectual Property Office (TIPO), an administrative agency of the Ministry of Economic Affairs. The Office is currently located in Taipei City near the venerated National Taiwan University, with branch offices in Taichung, Hsinchu and Kaohsiung.
The current Director General is Wang Meihua, who was appointed in December 2007. Wang graduated from National Taiwan Normal University in 1980, majoring in law, and has spent her entire 30 year career in the Ministry of Economic Affairs, 22 of which have been at the intellectual property office.
Patent Agents & Attorneys
In Taiwan, both Patent Agents (專利代理人) and Patent Attorneys (專利師) are authorized to file patent applications on behalf of companies and inventors. Please note that a Patent Attorney is not an attorney-at-law and may not file infringement suits or defend against one. The Patent Attorney Law was established in 2008 as a replacement for the prior Patent Agent standard. Taiwan currently has over 690 active registered Patent Agents and Attorneys.
Patent Statistics
For the past five years approximately 80,000 applications have been filed each year for Invention, Utility Model and Design Patents. Invention Patent applications account for 60% or ~50,000 applications, and have accounted for much of the overall application growth, which has been in step with growth in patent offices globally.
For Invention Patent applications, residents (i.e. Taiwanese applicants) are not the majority filers, although in recent years the disparity has decreased.
Top Filers
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For 2009, the top overall patent filers by country were Taiwan, Japan, the United States of America, Germany and South Korea. China, though not listed below, has made substantial gains over the years and already ranks number seven, just behind Netherlands.
Top Resident Applicants- 2009
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Top Non-Resident Applicants- 2009
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The high tech industry dominates in Taiwan, with the majority of patents related to consumer electronics. When broken down into International Patent Classifications (IPC), over 63% are related to electronics.
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Global Cooperation & Priority Rights
In 2002 Taiwan became a member of the World Trade Organization (WTO), and thus adheres to the Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) agreement. However, Taiwan is not a contracting member of the Patent Convention Treaty (PCT) and cannot be included in PCT applications.
Taiwan also has not signed the Paris Convention, although to fulfill the condition of WTO membership, Taiwan recognizes priority rights for applications from WTO, PCT and EPC member countries—provided the recognition is reciprocated for Taiwanese applicants (Article 27 of the Patent Act). This means the majority of non-residents filing applications at TIPO will be able to invoke their priority rights (the grace period is the standard 12 months). One notable exception is China, which does not recognize the priority rights of applications from Taiwan applications and vice versa.
On the Horizon
In less than a decade the Taiwan IP market has made significant growth, improvements and advances. Of course, the industry changes quickly. Major amendments to Taiwan's patent law are already in advanced draft stages, and include significant changes such as: providing more options for application restoration; allowing divisional applications even after notification of allowances; and incorporating inventive step into the disclosure grace period. Most recently, Taiwan and China signed a basic framework agreement on IP rights that will influence policy and IP strategies on both sides for decades to come. To stay up to date and informed of these developments, as well as news, IP events and more, be sure to subscribe to the NAIP Newsletter, or contact us at readersvc@naipo.com!
Resources & Links
Taiwan Intellectual Property Office
Taiwan Intellectual Property Court
Taiwan Intellectual Property Training Academy
NAIP Patent Blog
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