Local patents get poor response

LESS than 5% of the local patents from the private sector in the country receive sufficient funding to bring the product to commercial production stage.

Association of Intellectual Property Entrepreneurs and Organisations (AIPO) president Lok Choon Hong said about 2,000 patents were filed in the country annually to receive intellectual protection.

He said about half of these was filed by the private sector while the other half was filed by higher education institutions.

“Of the 1,000 filed by the private sector, less than 5% receive funding to bring the products successfully to commercial production.

“This is because there are less than 100 active angel investors in the country today, compared to more than 200,000 angel investors in the United States,” said Lok.

Those patents that had no problem in sourcing funding were usually those filed by the corporate sector, he said in an interview.

Busy day: Visitors booth hopping at the Intrenasionale Industrial Expo 2012 in PISA.

“There are about 7,000 to 8,000 intellectual products from overseas filing for patent protection in Ma-laysia yearly,” said Lok.

He said this after the launch of the Intrenasionale Industrial Expo 2012 at the Penang International Sports Arena (PISA) by Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng.

At the event, Lok also signed an MoU with Small and Medium Enterprise Association Malaysia (Samenta) president Koay Chiew Guan to establish a platform to enhance the implementation of mutually beneficial business and investment objectives.

To help the local inventors source for funding, AIPO had recently established the Angels Investors Clubs (AIC) in Penang and Kuala Lumpur.

“The founding of AIC is to facilitate the introduction of entrepreneurs to potential investors through presentation.

“AIC members comprised high net worth individuals interested in financing private intellectual property-based companies,” he said.

Meanwhile, Lim said to provide back-up for the small and medium enterprises (SME) in Penang, the state government would soon de-velop SME Villages in the Bukit Minyak Industrial Park, Penang Science Park and Batu Kawan Industrial Park.

Internasionale chief executive officer Andrew Chan said that this year, there were 120 exhibitors, about the same number as last year’s.

“About 25% of the 160 exhibitors are foreign companies,” he said.

The three-day Intrenasionale Industrial Expo 2012 saw the latest in automation equipment and green technology available in the market.

Read more at The Star Online http://thestar.com.my/metro/story.asp?file=/2012/9/4/north/11840322&sec=North

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