Notice

This Korea-UK Collaborative Research Intellectual Property Toolkit is the final result of a collaborative research project between Korea and the UK for promoting international collaboration on research and development being done in both countries.

 

The research and development (R&D) environment, both domestic and international, is currently undergoing dramatic changes under the new paradigm of Open Innovation, which came about as the result of rising R&D costs, rapid technological convergence, and the increased liquidity of research personnel. Joint international research efforts for patented technology have recently become more essential than ever.

 

In light of international collaborative research trends, Korea and the UK have developed guidelines for defining the research process, determining the kinds of patents attributable to various achievements, and specifying relevant revenue-sharing information (in regard to R&D, etc.) in cases where universities, public research institutes, and companies in multiple countries collaborate on research and development projects. These guidelines were assembled for the sake of preventing potential disputes, as well as to protect professors, researchers, and companies so as to encourage them in embarking upon further collaborative research endeavors.

 

This Korea-UK Collaborative Research IP Toolkit is comprised of three model agreements and three detailed guidelines pertaining to achievements attributable to the ownership of intellectual property when examined under three different collaborative research scenarios. All three agreements have detailed guidelines (as well as implementation advice) integrated within their texts, thereby making them accessible for non-IP experts. Although the three agreements do not cover every possible scenario, they should provide a useful foundation for IP management.

 

Ⅰ) In the first model, when universities, public research institutions, or industry collaborate on joint research, the university will own the intellectual property rights and grant licenses to industry.

 

Ⅱ) In the second, when universities, public research institutions, or industry collaborates on joint research, the industry partner will own the intellectual property rights but allow the university to use them for academic purposes.

 

Ⅲ) The third model outlines the method used for managing the co-ownership of IPR (intellectual Property Rights) arising from collaborative R&D between Korean and UK universities and/or public research institutes.

 

Please note that this Korea-UK Collaborative Research Intellectual Property Toolkit is specifically tailored to the collaborative research endeavors of Korea and the United Kingdom. For other international collaborative research cases―such as Korea-United States or Korea-China―customized contract terms should be determined by involved parties in order to reflect the reality that different situations require special advance verification and discussion.

 

Finally, this Collaborative Research IP Toolkit has been researched and carefully reviewed by Dr. Christine Reid of Northwood Reid and Dr. Jung of the Korean Intellectual Property Strategy Institute. Special thanks go out to them both.

 

We hope these agreements will stimulate further joint research endeavors among Korean and UK universities and businesses.