SMU launches intellectual property research centre

The Singapore Management University (SMU) on May 25 launched a new intellectual property research centre. Called the Applied Research Centre for Intellectual Assets and the Law in Asia (ARCIALA), it is the first in the region to focus on Asia-centric and cross-disciplinary research.

Under the World Intellectual Property Organisation's Patent Cooperation Treaty, Japanese company Panasonic and China's Huawei were among the top applicants for international patents last year, which shows Asia’s emergence as a focal point of intellectual property activities.

The new research centre will capitalise on this and adopt a multi-disciplinary approach in its empirical studies, working with the university's schools of business and social sciences.

Director of ARCIALA, Liu Kung-Chung, said: "We would like to know how to scientifically measure innovation. We will also take concrete examples from economies within Asia, such as China and India. They are the most populous countries, and they are the fast growing economies as well."

Said Senior Minister of State for Law Indranee Rajah: "Asian society is not only distinct from the West in culture and values; it is also far from homogeneous. Countries vary greatly in language, demography, development, legal systems and governance. All these make for fertile ground for research, which ARCIALA is well-positioned to undertake."