The current time at 16-25 February there took place AGEPI balance sessions (in the departments), within which were outlined the major achievements of the Agency in 2008 being sketched AGEPI directions and main tasks for 2009.
The impressive range of AGEPI activities, the first plan were enrolled procedures for examining applications and granting legal protection for intellectual property objects (IPO), examination and registration of contracts for the transfer of intellectual property rights, updating the legal status of protected objects, examining disputes arising in the examination process and valuating the IPO, carrying out controls in order to evaluate the legality in the process of using the works protected by copyright and related rights, strengthening the normative-legal, etc.
Thus, in 2008 to AGEPI were filed 7922 applications registration of IPO, of which 331 applications for registration of objects protected by copyright and related rights and 7591 for registrations of industrial property objects. Among the last, 2017 (27%) of applications came from national applicants, and 5574 (73%) - from foreign applicants. The most required IPO remain to be the trademarks - 6808 applications, including the 1581 national and 5227 applicants from foreign persons, follow industrial designs whose indicators are, accordingly, 384 applications - 72 national and 312 applicants from the foreign persons, appellations of origin - 7 applications from foreign applicants, inventions - 292 applications (272 from national applicants, 20 from the foreign ones), of which 16 applications by the procedure of Patent Cooperation Treaty) for short-term patents - 45 applications, utility models – 23 applications and plant varieties - 32 applications (absolute majority of national applicants).
As before, impressive number of applications submitted by foreign applicants for some IPO show their interest towards the market of Moldova, in the process of evolution. In recent years the share of applications of national applicants increases, and gradually in 2008 was 27%, which certifies desirable raising of economic activity of local entrepreneurs.
The number of patent applications filed by national applicants has increased in the 16 years since the foundation of the agency (1993-2008) consistently and is currently 5136 applications. During the years 1993-2008 were submitted to AGEPI 75,817 trademark applications, 7051 applications for registration of industrial design, 268 applications for utility models, 833 applications for appellation of origin, 219 applications for plant varieties, 2471 of applications for subject matter of copyright and related rights, etc. As mentioned, since 2008, under the new legislation began to be filed patent applications for short-term patents (45 applications).
After examination of applications in 2008 were issued 2478 titles of protection. 1774 of them relate to trademarks, 250 – to the patents, 12 - to plant varieties, 24 - to utility models, 88 - to Industrial Designs, 330 - to works protected by copyright and related rights.
On January 1, 2009 in Moldova were valid around 45,000 international trademarks registered through the Madrid procedure, approximately 3,400 registrations of industrial designs by the Hague proceedings, some 800 appellations of origin registered by the procedure of Agreement Lisbon, about 1000 national patents and 2300 Eurasian patents.
As in previous years, the most active universities in the area of patenting inventions were: USM, UTM, SMPhU “N. Testemitanu” etc. In thew frame of the Academy of Sciences of Moldova have been highlighted: Institute of Genetics and Plant Physiology (19 applications and 14 patents), Institute of Applied Physics (18 applications and 18 patents), Institute of Chemistry (13 applications and 10 patents), Institute of Electronic Engineering and Industrial Technologies (6 patents and 12 applications), Institute of Energy (1 and 9 patent applications), Institute of Microbiology and Biotechnology (7 patents and 7 patent applications).
In the passing year, increases the interest of economic agents towards the acquisition in the contracts of licenses or cession of the rights to use intellectual property objects legal protection in Moldova. Thus, in the year 2008 AGEPI registered 154 contracts, including 134 cession contracts and 17 - license contracts. Also during this period were recorded 2franchising contracts and 1 contract of gage of IP rights to objects.
In the balance year, with the scope to achieve effective the provisions of the law on copyright and related rights, AGEPI continued with perseverance controls on the legal capitalization of copies of works or phonograms in Moldova. Following these controls, have been prepared and submitted 138 reports of expertise (105 - the administrative cases and 33 - criminal) and 94 minutes. Simultaneously, there were destroyed 3016 copies of works or phonograms allegedly infringing, including DVDs, CD's, VCD, VHS, MC and HDDs.
In order to ensure legal marketing of audiovisual works and phonograms recorded on compact discs, audio cassettes, video, 936,684 control marks were granted.
The year 2008 is characterized by important changes pertaining to intellectual property. Need to adjust the rules of intellectual property protection to EU standards, stipulated in the EU-Moldova Action Plan, and the liquidation provisions of the gap between old laws and the state of affairs which was formed during the application of these laws led to the development by AGEPI and adoption in the last two years of the 6 new projects in the field of IP laws: Law on protection of industrial designs, protection of the Law on Trademarks, Law on protection of geographical indications, appellations of origin and traditional specialties guaranteed, Law on protection of inventions, Law the protection of plant varieties. Law on Copyright and Related Rights to be adopted this year.
Law on protection of geographical indications, appellations of origin and traditional specialties guaranteed to be unique for Moldova. Its implementation will create conditions for access of domestic products marked with the IPO on the Community market but also will contribute to a number of strategies adopted by the Government of Moldova.
For the first time in national legislation are formulated provisions on protection of inventions by a short-term patent. The main benefits of protection by this patent consists in simplified and fast examining, much less requirements to inventive activity (compared with traditional patent), lower expenses for protection.
AGEPI conducted monitoring activities of organizations of collective administration of rights of the author in terms of how the collection and distribution of royalties accumulated on the basis of licenses issued to beneficiaries, monitoring compliance with legislation by that bodes, provision of consultancy works in the country or abroad in order to capitalize, drafting of contracts at the request of the authors, right holders and users.
In accordance with the Article 108 g) of the Code on Science and Innovation of Moldova, which refers to recording the results of scientific research organizations in the sphere of science and innovation, in the year of balance in joint working AGEPI-ASM has completed the draft Regulation on registration and state records of scientific research activity results. Receiving and examining reports of scientific information sheets as listed programs / projects in the fields of science and innovation, funded by the state, led to the examination and registration during 2008 to AGEPI of 54 scientific reports. Also, AGEPI published the “Research reports of fields of science and innovation. Collection of abstracts “ (2005-2007), vol. 1, and permanently fills in DB “Scientific Results”.