Kibo Signs Business Agreement with Korea Intellectual Property Office (KIPO)

The Korea Technology Finance Corporation (Korea Technology Finance Corporation, Chairman Kim Jong-ho, hereinafter referred to as “KIBO”) announced on Wednesday the 5th that it signed a “Business Agreement to Strengthen the Intellectual Property Competitiveness of Small and Medium-sized Enterprises” with the Korea Intellectual Property Promotion Agency (KIPPA, President Kim Myeong-seop, hereinafter referred to as “KIPA”) at its Seoul office.

This agreement was established to establish a comprehensive support system covering the entire lifecycle of intellectual property rights acquisition and utilization for small and medium-sized enterprises by linking the intellectual property insurance business of the Korea Intellectual Property Office and the Korea Patent Information Service (KIPO)’s comprehensive patent information service.
Under the agreement, the two organizations will leverage their respective support capabilities to pursue various joint projects. KIBO will support SMEs' patent application-related expenses and the KIBO will support the agency's patent and technology transaction services. KIBO will collaborate on developing patent acquisition strategies for SMEs and supporting KIBO's intellectual property tax credit program.

Through this agreement, the two organizations plan to establish an organic cooperative system and actively contribute to enhancing the intellectual property competitiveness of small and medium-sized enterprises.

Park Joo-sun, Executive Director of Kibo, said, “This agreement has laid the foundation for small and medium-sized enterprises to acquire and utilize intellectual property rights more systematically,” and added, “Going forward, Kibo will actively support small and medium-sized enterprises in securing IP and enhancing their technological competitiveness by strengthening cooperation with relevant organizations.”

Meanwhile, KIBO, in collaboration with the Ministry of Intellectual Property, introduced Korea's first IP Deduction Program in August 2019. This program has been providing ongoing support to ease the burden of IP acquisition costs for SMEs and reduce the risk of disputes. The IP Deduction Program offers various benefits to participating companies, including: ▲premium interest rate (2.75 percentage points), ▲additional guarantee fee reduction (0.2 percentage points), ▲intellectual property cost loans, ▲emergency loan support, and ▲free consulting services. It has established itself as a key support system for SMEs' IP-based growth.

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