Vietnam should increase protection of intellectual property (IP) and copyright in the digital environment to stand firm in the domestic playground, heard a seminar in Hanoi on March 23.

Director General of the Copyright Office under the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism Bui Nguyen Hung said his office was entrusted to study and to stipulate a more specific application of information technology to protect intellectual property in the digital environment.

According to Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Tran Quoc Khanh, only a few Vietnamese businesses are aware of intellectual property, which makes it difficult for them to get engaged in the Trans-pacific Partnership (TPP) and the European Union–Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA).

Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Tran Quoc Khanh speaking at the seminar (Source: noip.gov.vn)

He said under the TPP agreement, it is not compulsory for Vietnam to remove its administrative measures to protect intellectual property. However, it requires the country to take civil solutions such as confiscating or discarding products in violation of IP rights, at a stricter level than other agreements.

Sharing this viewpoint, Deputy Director of the intellectual property rights department under the Ministry of Science and Technology Le Ngoc Lam said, some regulations on intellectual property protection in TPP are different from that of other trade deals, such as the protection of physical objects and the duration of protection.

He warned that many Vietnamese businesses are marketing their products on the internet but use the brand names of other enterprises, violating copyright laws.

If the violators do not give up the unlawful practice, they will face serious disadvantages when the TPP comes into effect, he stressed, adding that criminal measures will be applied for infringements.

Source: VNA