Indications in our primary processes evidence that 2013 has marked the transition to slightly better times. Recovery from the difficult period we are experiencing as a result of the financial crisis, seems to be on its way. At the end of the first half-year the number of trademark filings fell by 3% compared with the same period in 2012. In the second half-year, however, the number of trademark filings rose by 4%. Looking at the full year 2013, the number of trademark filings showed only a very slight dip.
Fortunately there were no financial consequences. This is mainly attributable to the sharp decline in the number of unpaid trademark filings and the sharp rise in the number of accelerated registrations, which were up 10.4%. The number of international extensions via the WIPO also showed a considerable improvement, up 8.5%, while the i-DEPOT continues to demonstrate excellent performance (+8.6%).
Yet 2013 has not been a year alleviated from concerns. Some results continue to fall short of expectations. Trademark renewals declined by 4%, the number of oppositions submitted declined by 2.7% and the design filings likewise reflected a slight decline of 2.2%.
The statutory framework pertaining to our primary tasks was subject to a new amendment, with the entry into force of the Third Amendment Protocol of the Benelux Convention on Intellectual Property (BCIP) and the corresponding provisions in the Implementing Regulations. The Protocol took effect on 1 October 2013 and mainly contains changes to the following:
The entry into force of these amendments on 1 October is linked to a number of other important amendments as follows:
Our legal affairs, administrative and technical staff have put a great deal of effort into the above and the entire process has proceeded to everyone's full satisfaction - both users and the BOIP.
We also worked hard on the Fourth BCIP Amendment Protocol in 2013, including finalising the text of the Protocol concerning the new powers of the Benelux Court of Justice.
The Protocol will, however, only enter into force on completion of the texts of the Rules of Procedure, and the Rules of Procedure for the Court of Justice.
We do for that matter hope that the Fourth Amendment Protocol will enter into force at the same time as the Fifth Amendment Protocol. The latter aims to institute an invalidation or revocation procedure and to amend the opposition procedure.
Lastly, in 2013 an important final step was taken at the legal level with our Organisation becoming a party to the Singapore Treaty on the law of Trade Marks. It is the first time that our Organisation has become party to an international treaty using its legal personality under international law.
We made substantial progress on various other projects in 2013. The discussions concerning the public i-DEPOT have definitively been concluded, happily with a positive outcome. This means that it will be possible to publish the contents of an i-DEPOT in full or in part.
We have also introduced financial incentives to promote the use of our online services. Effective 1 January 2014 the charges for paper services, if also available online, were increased by 15%.
At the request of the Caribbean island of Sint Maarten we are implementing the national Trademarks Act, emulating the approach we adopted for the BES islands of Bonaire, Sint Eustatius and Saba. We are proud of the fact that our serious approach and the high quality delivered are thus
being rewarded. Our collaboration with Sint Maarten, which was formalised in an agreement signed by the competent minister and the Director General of the BOIP, takes effect on 1 January 2015.
The European Commission submitted its long awaited proposals for the text of the Trade Mark Package in March 2013. These proposals should lead to the reform of the Directive concerning the harmonisation of national trademarks and the Community trade mark regulation (including the fees). While a number of the proposed amendments represent a step in the right direction, considerable criticism has been voiced by the Member States (or their national offices) in the European Council, on the one hand, and by the user organisations and the European Parliament, on the other. The criticism revolved
around strictly legal and practical, or purely political aspects.
The Benelux Council for Intellectual Property (BCIE) held two meetings to analyse the proposals. It has drawn up a detailed recommendation and added it to the comments made by the Benelux Association of Trade Marks and Design Law and those of the BOIP.
According to the information currently available, it seems that the definitive version of the TM Package, which should differ significantly from the proposals submitted in March 2013, will in many respects help to restore the balance between national trademarks and the community trademark which has often gone astray. If this indeed proves to be the case, our businesses will be the first to benefit!
The Benelux Patent Platform (BPP) project has now reached the development and programming phase. The plan is to take this project into production in Belgium in September 2014. The participating parties are extremely positive about the progress made on this dossier and the collaboration with European Dynamics, an ICT service provider and software developer.
In the field of technology we continued to invest in renewing our systems and in the further automation of our services. The migration of our portal in autumn 2013 signified an important milestone. The portal now features advanced technology which expedites the online availability of new applications. The migration of our portal also means that we can develop a plan for conducting all communications with our users by electronic means.
Following an audit of our IT security systems, we put measures in place to further reinforce the procedures and aids employed. We also established a service management body that will enable us to significantly improve the corrective and adaptive maintenance of our computer systems.
Just as in 2012, the BOIP collaborated intensively at the international level. The majority of our IT and operational teams took part in various projects initiated by the OHIM Cooperation Fund (mainly relating to the Software Package). Serving as the pilot office, the BOIP contributed to the development of a programme for the electronic submission (e-filing) of designs. The programme was put into operation in January 2014.
Assistance with the convergence programme was sought from our Legal Affairs Department in the area of both classification and absolute and relative grounds (the likelihood of confusion).
The TMclass database contains around 60,000 terms in 27 languages approved by all the national European offices and the OHIM. Through close collaboration the database was integrated into BOIP Online Filing, our application for the online submission of trademark applications. This classification tool has therefore become a valuable tool for all trademark applicants who use our services.
Our collaboration with the WIPO in 2013 mainly involved the successful completion of the International Registration Process Integration (IRPI) project. Serving as the pilot office, the BOIP contributed to the development of this tool enabling
the online submission of international trademark applications. The application was put into operation in early January 2014.
In the area of Information and Promotion we conducted an important campaign in 2013 to create awareness for trademarks. The campaign primarily targeted the creative sector and start-ups. This ambitious and innovative project in terms of tone of voice and scale was supported by a range of online media. Our various partners also assisted us in generating publicity for our campaign. While it is difficult to determine what direct impact the campaign has had on the number of trademark filings, we are nonetheless pleased with the increased name recognition and the dynamic image it has given our organisation. Awareness of all aspects that
play a role in intellectual property has in any event grown among small and medium-sized enterprises (SME). That too is gratifying.
Lastly, in 2013 we took several key steps internally in further developing the structure of the Office. A milestone was achieved with the agreement in principle on the revision of our Headquarters Agreement with our host country, the Kingdom of the Netherlands. The establishment of an internal tax system and our own social security system, emulating those of numerous international organisations based in The Hague, is essential for ratifying the international dimension of the BOIP and its status as an intergovernmental organisation. In addition new pension rules have been adopted and we have continued to restructure the
IT Department by appointing a new manager and an architect. Much to its regret the Management Board was forced to take the decision to undertake a reorganisation to trim the number of administrative teams. The volume of work has unfortunately been reduced due to the increasing automation of our services.
All in all 2013 marks an important milestone in the modernisation of our organisation. Despite the economic recession we have performed all of our primary tasks in a reliable and purposeful manner. We have continued to make investments and have successfully completed various major projects. This offers good prospects for 2014.