United Arab Emirates signs MoU with non-profit organization to protect intellectual property rights

Hoping to reduce the amount of counterfeited materials available in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), the UAE’s Ministry of Economy signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Brand Owners’ Protection Group for the Gulf Cooperation Council & Yemen (BPG).

According to their website, the BPG, a non-profit organization, “is a group of world leading Brand Owners and Legal Consultants who are alarmed at the continuous illicit replication of genuine goods and interested in the enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights.” According the MoU, the plan is to have “a strategic alliance, by setting forth a framework of cooperation, between the Ministry of Economy and BPG, including its current and future members, by adhering to the relevant international agreements and applicable laws and regulations in the UAE.”

Through this MoU the BPG will provide technical and legal training to the Ministry of Economy officials, inspectors, staff and officials from other law enforcement agencies which are specialized in protecting IPR and combating counterfeits concerning the BPG trademarks at the cost of the BPG. The BPG, through its service providers and members, will also participate and cooperate with the Ministry to offer the law enforcers the required legal assistance which will include legal analysis as well as legal studies.

The Ministry of Economy and the BPG will build on the excellent cooperation and work in unison to raise public awareness about Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) through a series of dedicated campaigns throughout the UAE.

The measures will focus on the importance of protecting the IPR by applying, registering, depositing and recording IPR at the relevant division at the Ministry of Economy.  Both parties will seek the implementation of the international, federal laws with regard to IPR, its protection and will shed light on the negative impact of any violation of these rights.

The full text of the article may be read here.

SS