With the nation’s inclination towards a knowledge-based society, the subject of Intellectual Property (IP) rights is becoming increasingly relevant. The government and the university recognize this importance and one of their key efforts was observed at the Institute for Leadership, Innovation and Advancement (ILIA) where it held the distinction for holding a talk on IP strategy and commercialization in universities and research institutions on the afternoon of 15^th October 2014.

In attendance were guest speaker, Geeta Kadambi, CEO, Founder and Patent Agent of Riddhi IP, LLC from the United States, staff from the Innovation and Enterprise Office of UBD, staff from the Brunei Intellectual Property Office (BruIPO) of the Brunei Economic Development Board (BEDB), university staff and students and members of the public who were interested in IP rights. 

With over 20 years of experience in the world of science and patent law, the speaker was forthright in her talk when she expounded on the necessity of an effective IP strategy that is consistent with the realities of today and the future : “Think about what the next 10 years is going to be like. Inventions need to take into account the future; what people want and need. Mixed technology is what will make a difference.” This corresponds to how today’s technology emphasises on the accumulative effect by having more than one function or purpose whilst being intuitive at the same time. 

Kadambi said that Brunei’s relative recent induction to the patent corporation treaty is a sign of accomplishment and of unexpended potential. She added that the university and the government are taking the right steps to encourage youths to gain entrepreneurial skills in order to monetise their knowledge that they contribute to society.

Strategy is important because it protects the rights of the inventor and she elaborated that the university would be able to allocate funds; identify niche areas where they can attract faculty talents and also people and business communities to contribute to the local economy.

On the subject of commercialization, Kadambi shared that one of the vital steps is to build a commercial relationship with the entities involved in the process and expansion. She also reminded the audience that a patent pending status is unattractive to investors . 

Mr Nagender Aneja, a Research Officer (Patent) from the Innovation and Enterprise Office of UBD encouraged staff and students to submit their ideas for IP protection. “UBD has invested a lot of money in research and development so it’s better to acquire IP protection, publish it and finally, commercialise it to which they would get royalties.”

He explained that when applied directly through the university; patent application and filing would be covered and applicants are exempted from any fees, which they would normally pay if they were to approach the BruIPO instead. He assured that as per IP rights, the inventor would get the appropriate percentage of the royalties; however, because of the application process, the university would also be entitled to a fair fraction. Mr Nagender added that about 7-8 applications are received in a year mostly from the sciences.

Mr Bakhtiar Hafeez Bandial, Assistant Registrar of the Registry of Patents and Industrial Designs, BruIPO of BEDB revealed that the office is fairly new with its establishment in June 2013 but it maintains a close working relationship with the Innovation and Enterprise Office. Any local invention needing commercialization has to first undergo assessment through the BruIPO before making its way to a worldwide patent. When inquiring as to what extent IP rights are currently being monitored and enforced in Brunei, Mr Bahktiar disclosed that the office operates under a complaint-only system. “The Police would be called in to act only if a complaint has been submitted from the rights holder.”

Being fairly new to the market means having a lot of opportunities to learn and Kadambi expressed this best as the university’s efforts towards making Brunei a knowledge-based society: “You can’t stop at education and your university is going one step further to help students to realise their dreams by making them thinkers, innovators and business people.”