SINGAPORE: Singapore came in at 9th place on global intellectual property (IP) index. Scoring 84%, the city-state is ahead of Switzerland, Australia and New Zealand, and only came second to Japan in Asia-Pacific region. The global IP index Create analyses IP climate in 50 economies around the world using 40 unique indicators that benchmark activity critical to innovation development surrounding patent, trademark, copyright, and trade secrets protection. The results of this year’s Index illustrate a growing global commitment to IP-driven creativity and innovation,” said President and CEO of GIPC David Hirschmann.
“The majority of countries took steps to strengthen their IP systems and foster an environment that encourages and incentivizes creators to bring their ideas to market. While a clear pack of leaders in IP protection top the rankings, the leadership gap has narrowed in a new global race to the top,” he continued.
The US tops the list, followed by Britain, Sweden, France, Germany, Ireland and the Netherlands in the next sixth places. The only two economies from Asia-Pacific region that made it to the top 10 are: Japan ranking 8th and Singapore ranking 9th. In the last poll, Singapore scored 82% and ranked 8th on the Index in 2016 which assessed 45 countries. Singapore’s improvement on the ranking “reflects a strong performance in the new indicators added”, according to the US Chamber of Commerce. The latest Index added 6 new indicators in the areas of commercialisation and systemic efficiency to provide a more complete, bottom-to-top picture of the investments countries are making in support of domestic innovation and creativity. Under the category of systemic efficiency, the 3 new indicators are: (1) inter-governmental coordination of IP rights enforcement efforts, (2) consultation with stakeholders during IP policy formation, and (3) educational campaigns and awareness-raising. Singapore’s key strengths identified are: (1) advanced national IP framework in place, and (2) active participation in efforts to accelerate patent prosecutions.
