THE Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOPHL) said it hopes to complete an intellectual property (IP) valuation model next year to help creators access financing.
“We are going to study the different models of valuation around the world, and then we will determine which is best fitting for the Philippines,” IPOPHL Director General Rowel S. Barba told reporters late Thursday.
“This is already part of the budget next year … We hope launch it by the middle of next year,” he added.
According to Mr. Barba, IP valuation and commercialization are among the immediate priorities of the IPOPHL under its Philippine IP Strategy (PHIPS) 2025-2030.
“Our most immediate priority is to capacitate IPOPHL on how to value IP. Then next is IP financing so we can talk to the banks to fund the IP creations and accept the valuation as collateral,” he said.
“After that, (the creation) will be financed and commercialized so that the creator can earn money,” he added.
He said that the issue of getting financing for IP creations is a recurring problem with banks not universally accepting IPs as collateral.
“In the first place, (banks) also do not have the capacity to value, unlike land, which has zonal values and market values,” he said.
“So far, jurisdictions with advanced models in valuation are Japan, South Korea, and Canada. And the advantage of Japan and South Korea is that their state banks support IPs,” he added.
He said game developers first asked the IPOPHL how to value their games when selling at an overseas fair.
“In the case of lagundi (a plant with medicinal properties with applications in asthma and cough treatments), which was discovered by UP Manila, because they did not know the value, they just enter into a technology transfer agreement or a license agreement with a pharmaceutical company,” he added.
He said using this route, creators get a smaller share of revenue — about 35% of gross sales.
Mr. Barba said that the Philippines can no longer afford to wait for third parties to value Philippine IP. — Justine Irish D. Tabile