ASEAN aims to join Madrid Protocol in 2015
On December 9-11, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Secretariat coordinated with Singapore, the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) and the ASEAN-European Union (EU) Cooperation Program to organize a training course in Singapore on the Madrid Protocol - an international trademark treaty administered by WIPO.
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Funded by the ASEAN-Australia-New Zealand Free Trade Area (AANZFTA) Economic Cooperation Support Program, the training course is being implemented to enhance support for ASEAN member countries in preparing for their accession to the Madrid Protocol by the end of 2015, as part of efforts to build the ASEAN Community by 2015.
With the Madrid Protocol, ASEAN’s competitiveness will be enhanced through effective and simple intellectual property (IP) regimes in the region, giving businesses confidence that their valuable intellectual property is protected in cross-border trade and investment.
The Madrid Protocol also makes ASEAN a more conducive environment for brand owners to do business, allowing them to deal directly in a commonly accepted language with the intellectual property offices of each member country and use this registration to protect their brands within ASEAN as well as in other important markets.
The training course is part of the activities aimed at ASEAN’s accession to the Madrid Protocol Phase II, helping member countries move from awareness-raising in Phase I to building the foundation for the structures needed to effectively implement the protocol.
To date, the Philippines, Singapore and Vietnam have joined and the remaining ASEAN member countries are in various stages of the process.
According to Vietnam+
