Exclusivity in use, protection against unfair competition, the attraction of investors and projection to international markets for the products or services, among others, were some of the advantages of registering a trademark, as presented by Gabriela Toledo, adviser in Intellectual Property and Technology Transfer Contracts (INT/Toledo IP), on August 6th, at the seventh edition of IP Meetings, a series of virtual lectures promoted by ABPI and WIPO – the World Intellectual Property Organization. In this edition, the event had the support of the CBPF (Brazilian Center for Clinical Research), the National Laboratory of Scientific Computing (LNCC), and Fiocruz (Oswaldo Cruz Foundation).
Under the theme “Intellectual Property and Hackathons: Trademark Registration”, the webinar also featured Maria Luiza Mondelli and Renata Frota, representatives of the second and third-placed projects, respectively, in the general category of HackCovid19 – a hackathon of innovative solutions with the potential to contribute to tackling the Covid-19 pandemic: the “A Vera” and “Dr. June” technologies. The virtual opening table was attended by ABPI’s Treasurer Tatiana Campello, the WIPO representative Isabella Pimentel, and Paulo Abílio Varella Lisboa, a researcher at the Interactive Technologies Experimentation Nucleus (NEXT) of the Institute of Scientific and Technological Communication and Information in Health (ICICT) from Fiocruz.
“A Vera” has developed a bot to monitor and publish alerts about potentially false or unfounded content, supported by reliable sources. The software combats “misinformation with information”, identifying the main influencers on a given subject through a data collection mechanism. The group has already browsed the BPTO’s (Brazilian Patent and Trademark Office) website for future registration of its trademark and also intends to protect the software.
“Dr. June”, in turn, consists of a bot that simulates a conversation between someone suspected of having Covid-19 infection and a primary health care provider. In the dialogue, either by mobile phone or the internet, the professional advises on the first medical measures and indicates the nearest location for assistance. The name of the invention is inspired by the scientist June Almeida, the first to identify the human coronavirus, in 1964.
In her lecture, Gabriela Toledo explained that intellectual property can be worked according to the profile of the developer. Being an entrepreneur, he can create a startup and even seek investors for his business. “But you will necessarily have to develop your trademark”, she noted. Another way to use IP is by licensing the developed technology, which can be done with a company that can economically exploit the asset.
Watch the full event on ABPI’s Channel on Youtube.
