What Tundayag IP’s Top IP Agent Award from DTI’s IPOPHL means and what’s next

As part of the celebration of the National Intellectual Property Month (NIPM) this April 2023, the Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOPHL) has presented various awards, recognitions, and citations at the 2023 Gawad Yamang Isip Awards and Fashion Night themed “Women in IP” and held in Maynila Ballroom of The Manila Hotel on April 26.

During the event, Edmar Tundayag of Tundayag IP was awarded as the 2022 Top Intellectual Property Agent for Trademark by the IPOPHL, an attached agency of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) and mandated to regulate the state’s intellectual property (IP) policies.

IP refers to creations of the human intellect. Similar to tangible/physical real properties (such as lands, houses, and office buildings), intangible creations of our minds can be exclusively owned, bought, sold, licensed or rented, borrowed, exchanged, or donated gratuitously.

For example, when Jollibee Food Corporation acquired Mang Inasal, it has been reported that the total identifiable assets acquired by Jollibee was valued at about P2.6 billion, about P600 million of which came from the physical assets of Mang Inasal while about P2 billion of which was accounted for by its IP-related assets which mainly include its flagship trademark. 

With awardee Tundayag were his colleagues former IPOPHL IPR Specialist Engr. Marissa Tundayag, former IPOPHL Patent Examiner Engr. Rey Abraham Negre, and former IPOPHL Patent Bureau Director Dr. Epifanio Rey Evasco, all of whom are distinguished IP professionals.

What the Top IP Agent Award means 

First and foremost, the award is a byproduct of the trust and confidence in Tundayag IP of its clients, the dedication of its hardworking founders, partners, associates, and consultants, and as well as its healthy facilitation relationship with the IPOPHL which is proven to have been very accommodating to all its stakeholders — for which Tundayag IP is beyond grateful. 

Tundayag IP’s IP filings in its care, particularly its trademark filings, indeed grew at a faster-than-expected pace in 2020 and up to the present. Interestingly, this is the COVID era that has been forcing many business owners and entrepreneurs to adapt to the new reality and spur innovations in ways that would make their investments more conservative at turbulent times. 

On the question as to why the trademark filings are making headway during the COVID era despite the fact that business owners would normally cut back on expenses during an economic slowdown, awardee Tundayag responded with some revealing reasons.

“The workflows in our offices were further optimized at the onset of pandemic in 2020,” Tundayag said. “We automated a huge chunk of our manual processes, and this effort has enabled Tundayag IP to make its service fees even more affordable and minimize its administrative and IP documentation expenses.”

“Our partners and associates in our offices were also able to save time following the successful automation effort and, consequently, they had the liberty to focus more on acquiring in-depth knowledge on IP by completing IPOPHL administered courses on various areas of IP.”

He said however that the automation in the internal workflows alone is not enough, so it had to come side by side with 99% digitally delivering their IP registration facilitation services and messages. “It was also propitious that the IPOPHL at that time had been notably aggressive in enhancing its digital mode of doing business for its stakeholders,” he added.

IPOPHL awardee Tundayag also revealed a few other controlling factors. For one, he said that some in the working class who suddenly found themselves unemployed started their own businesses, and this opened the doors for them to develop their own brands.

At the same time, he said that the creative minds in several industries enjoyed more idle time in their private spaces during the strictly imposed lockdowns, effectively giving them the much-awaited opportunities to think of something DISTINCTIVE, NEW, or ORIGINAL.

Protecting the DISTINCTIVE, NEW, or ORIGINAL

Multi-awarded Tundayag explained that the ever-growing competition in any industry stimulates big and small business owners to secure exclusive ownerships or rights over their distinctive brands, new innovations, and other original creations. 

“Distinctive brand names and brand logos can be registered with the IPOPHL as trademarks,” he stressed. The registration, according to him, establishes presumed exclusive rights or ownership over the registered names and logos. He continued that, “Initially, the period of protection here is ten (10) years from the date of registration and can be perpetually renewed for a period of ten (10) years at a time.” “Business names, business taglines, and even trade dresses are also subject to trademark registration in this jurisdiction,” he elaborated.

“Exclusive ownership over new technical products and new technical processes can also be exclusively owned,” he underscored, adding that patents do protect these technical innovations for limited periods, up to twenty (20) years from filing in one particular route. 

Original artistic and literary works, according to him, are the kinds of creations that are eligible for copyright protection. “Terms of copyright protection vary depending on the type of work” he said, emphasizing that the copyright protection in the Philippines can be enjoyed generally during the lifetime of the work’s author and fifty (50) years after his/her death.

A trademark is DISTINCTIVE if..

“If your trademark cannot be confused with another trademark – generally speaking,” Tundayag said, noting that the “likelihood of confusion” among trademarks such as brand names and logos in conflict with one another is an issue that is highly arguable.

A product/process is NEW if..

Cutting to the chase, Tundayag said that a product or process characterizing a technical solution filed for a patent is considered new if it has not been publicly disclosed in any manner and anywhere in the world before the patent application’s filing or priority date.

A work of art/literature is ORIGINAL if..

“That’s a tough one,” he said, articulating however that an artistic or literary work is deemed original generally if there’s some minimal degree of creativity in it or, put differently, its author independently created the work using his own skill, labor and judgment.

Meet Tundayag IP

Tundayag IP is a multi-awarded, topnotch, and leading brand of IP registration facilitation services in the country, competently and passionately managed by husband and wife Edmar Tundayag and Engr. Marissa Tundayag. Their advisor is Engr. Rey Abraham Negre.

Edmar Tundayag is an IP practitioner since 2007, a former IP researcher in an American R&D company, a former IP administrator in one of the fastest growing Filipino-owned law firm, a former technical consultant at the IPOPHL’s Patent Bureau, an authorized representative in mediation proceedings, and a court-appointed expert witness in IP dispute proceedings.

He is also a member of the Technical Working Group (TWG) that authored the IPOPHL’s 2018 version of its “Patent Examination Guidelines for Information Communications Technology (ICT) and Computer Implemented Inventions (CIIs).” He is an IP lecturer and resource person. 

Awardee Tundayag top-notched the IPOPHL’s 2013 Patent Agent Qualifying Examination (PAQE), obtaining the scores of 95% (patent drafting paper) and 100% (patent prosecution paper), the highest so far in the history of the examination. He is a registered patent agent.

The relevant pre-PAQE trainings and the actual PAQE questions were focused on the procedural aspects of IP registration and prosecution, patent research, and patent drafting, all designed to establish competency of a passer to practice IP in general and patents in particular.

Engr. Marissa Tundayag has been in the IP field since 2015 starting with her civil service rendered for the IPOPHL and thereafter dedicating most of her time to Tundayag IP’s patent, trademark, and copyright registration works.

Engr. Rey Abraham Negre has been practicing IP since 1985 in various capacities – as a patent researcher and examiner, a PAQE passer, an IP agent, a mediator, and an expert witness.

Tundayag IP is a recipient of dozens of other awards and recognitions, demonstrating business excellence from the transparent and ethical practice of IP by its resident IP agents.

Who needs Tundayag IP?

“It’s best for every inventor, innovator, brand owner, business owner, or creator who’s not familiar with the substantive and procedural aspects of the registration or grant process before the IPOPHL to hire an IP agent,” awardee Tundayag precisely pointed out. “It saves time.”

“The substantive part deals with the application of IP laws against the facts of a particular application for IP registration, ultimately leading to a decision by a competent authority on whether an IP sought to be exclusively owned is worthy of grant/registration.”

“The procedural part lays down how an application for IP registration should be filed, examined, prosecuted, published, allowed or otherwise refused, and maintained if need be.”

“What needs to be submitted to comply with the prescribed requirements. What to do with the registration/grant. How to value a registered IP. Who to approach when there’s a copycat. Tundayag IP will continue to excel in this highly specialized discipline – for its clients.”

“Tundayag IP welcomes queries from the public, and we will respond with the best of our means and circumstances. Our correspondence email is [email protected].” 

ADVT.