By Danilo B. Largo, Ph.D., Director, Office of Research and Manager of the Innovation and Technology Support Office (ITSO) of the University of San Carlos, Philippines
The “publish or perish’” mindset has governed academic research for years, both in the Philippines and beyond. Consequently, copyright was widely regarded as the single most important intangible asset held by universities. However, thanks to the drive by the Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOPHL), with the support of WIPO, to establish Innovation and Technology Support Offices (ITSOs) in universities and research institutes across the country, a new mindset is emerging. A new mantra – “patent, publish and profit”, which emphasizes the broad use of intellectual property (IP) to leverage the knowledge generated by university researchers to solve society’s problems – is gaining currency.