H.E. Ambassador Dr Lansana GBERIE

Chile

14 INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY AND INNOVATION: ROLE OF IP TO RAISE FINANCE FOR START-UPS

525.   Firstly, our delegation would like to thank the co-sponsors for placing this interesting matter on this Council's agenda. Our delegation considers that access to financing through intellectual property is crucial for SMEs. Many of the innovators taking their first steps do not have the financial track record or collateral needed to access financing via the traditional routes. This is precisely the reason why intellectual property assets can represent a powerful tool available to innovators who are seeking to take the next step in their projects. 526.   Chile has been establishing itself as a business hub for start-ups through a drive by the State and collaboration with the private sector. These projects use a variety of sources to access financing. In terms of grants, we would like to highlight the existence of seed capital programmes and the "Start-up Chile" accelerator. Innovators may also access services and capital provided by incubators in the earliest stages of their projects' development. In both initiatives, the provision of grants and the incubators, the public sector plays a fundamental role in creating connections and enabling innovative projects to become a reality. 527.   Accelerators are also increasingly present in later stages of the project, with recent years seeing the entry of new actors, which has led to the diversification of the offer in this area. Venture capital and angel investors may also be accessed. In this connection, some actors have decided to focus their investment on projects that are particularly strong in terms of intellectual property assets. This may be the case in the creative industries sector or for those products associated with commercial patents and/or trademarks that are strong or have potential. 528.   Nevertheless, the valuation of intellectual property assets remains a significant challenge. The difficulties associated with this process mean that there is still potential that has not yet been fully exploited in terms of access to financing, whether it involves using these assets as collateral or other alternatives that take initiatives to the next level. Our delegation considers that it is highly important to identify potential shared challenges in this area.

The Council took note of the statements made.

84. The Chair said this item had been put on the agenda at the request of the delegations of Australia, Canada, Chile, the European Union, Japan, Singapore, Switzerland, the Separate Customs Territory of Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen and Matsu, the United Kingdom, and the United States of America. These delegations had also submitted a communication on this topic, circulated in document in order to allow Members to prepare for today's discussion.
85. The representatives of Switzerland; Japan; the United States of America; Australia; Canada; Chinese Taipei; Singapore; the European Union; the United Kingdom; Chile; Hong Kong, China; Uruguay; Mexico; Switzerland; South Africa; India; China; and Indonesia took the floor.
86. The Council took note of the statements made.

IP/C/M/106, IP/C/M/106/Add.1