Intellectual Property (IP), according to the Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOPHL), is the “creations of the mind; inventions; literary and artistic works; and symbols, names, and images used in commerce." In other words, (IP) is an idea for a design, brand, or invention, developed and used either by an individual or a group.  

In the DOST Advanced Science Technology Institute (DOST-ASTI), the researchers craft new ideas and technologies which could be implemented into research and development (R&D) programs or projects. These will result in new useful technological equipment, systems, or processes, which are then forwarded for IP application.  

Upon proposing a feasible research idea, the Technology Licensing Office (TLO) of DOST-ASTI comes in to protect this through Intellectual Property application. It then proceeds with a research agreement such as a memorandum agreement (MOA) and a non-disclosure agreement (NDA). IP protection process continues subsequently with the implementation of the R&D. Succeeding IP application processes are filed after the R&D produced a newly developed technology, prior to its commercialization. These include the drafting of the End-User License Agreement (EULA), the Software Licensing Agreement, and other DOST-ASTI Agreements. These processes are important, especially for those R&Ds that result in multiple IPs. After all, IP is one of the most valuable assets of R&Ds.  

Through the assistance offered by DOST Technology Application and Promotion Institute (DOST-TAPI), patent filing in DOST-ASTI increased. This assistance is called the Local Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) Assistance for the Research and Development Institutes (RDIs) of DOST. By hiring lawyers to draft the patent, the process is expedited since they are already experts in patent drafting. 

In recent year, despite the onset of COVID-19, DOST-ASTI was able to protect its IPs. There was also an increase in patent protections filed, with four (4) patent filings in 2020, compared to one patent filing in 2019. Overall, from March of 2019 to April 2021, a total of 35 IPs have been filed within DOST-ASTI through the TLO. The total number of registered IPs from 2010 to the present is 49. 

Also, in the previous year 2020, some DOST-ASTI projects have released EULA consisting of Weather Stations (46%) from Meteorological Data Acquisition Stations for Information Dissemination (MASID), the derived maps from satellite imageries from the Remote Sensing and Data Science: DATOS Help Desk (DATOS) (3%), weather and lightning data from Understanding Lightning and Thunderstorms (ULAT) (12%), and satellite and data imageries form Philippine Earth Data Resource Observation (PEDRO) Center (39%). 

EULA is a non-exclusive license granted by DOST-ASTI to end-users to utilize R&D products of the agency for applications including, but not limited to, research, academic, development, disaster risk management, national security, and non-commercial purposes. To request needed data, a formal letter of request and an accomplished EULA form must be submitted to TLO. 

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The DOST-ASTI Technology Licensing Office (TLO) leads activities in Intellectual Property protection, commercialization, licensing, and technology transfer. It aims to bridge the gap between DOST-ASTI technologies and the public. For any queries with the DOST-ASTI TLO kindly email them at tlo@asti.dost.gov.ph, you may also visit their Facebook page here, or visit their project page through https://asti.dost.gov.ph/services/technology-licensing-office/.