Visiting Fellow Paper: Role of Patents in Promoting E-commerce Technology Transfer in CAREC FTAs

CAREC Institute Visiting Fellow Program paper “Role of Patents in Promoting E-commerce Technology Transfer in CAREC FTAs,” authored by Qian Yin, explores the substantive rules of patent protection in the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights and free trade agreements (FTAs) to promote e-commerce technology transfer in the CAREC region.

The CAREC Digital Strategy 2030 recognizes regional digital cooperation in policy design, capacity building, and digital technologies to accelerate digital transformation. At the same time, FTAs featuring e-commerce or digital trade-related provisions are rising to advance the development of norms and rules for regional digital cooperation. The patents act as both direct and indirect sources of technology transfer in light of the patentability and disclosure requirements. By exploring the status quo and the way out for CAREC FTAs in unleashing the potential of patents to advance the transfer of e-commerce technology, the paper proposes a pan-CAREC FTA framework to integrate intra- and extra-bloc cooperation, with reference to ASEAN practice, incorporating rules of patentability and disclosure requirements regarding e-commerce technology.