The EU funded Project “Support to Enforcement of the Intellectual Property Rights” in the Republic of Moldova, together with the State Agency for Intellectual Property (AGEPI), organized, on 21st September 2018, a workshop entitled "Intellectual property right infringements on the Internet: realities and practices to combat the phenomenon".

The event was attended by experts from the EU Project, AGEPI specialists, representatives from Ministry of Economy and Infrastructure, General Police Inspectorate, Prosecutor's Office, as well as the biggest players on the ICT market in Moldova.

At the opening of the event, AGEPI Deputy Director General, Mr. Andrei Popa, stated that the Agency, as a national intellectual property office, is responsible for promoting and carrying out activities in the field of intellectual property protection, ensuring the implementation of IP strategies and monitoring compliance with legislation.

"The EU Project support for our work is indisputable and support in combating online IP infringements derives from its overall objective: to improve the enforcement of IPR law and regulations in Republic of Moldova", Mr. Andrei Popa said.

Mr. Kenny Wright, Deputy Team Leader of the Project, presented the international IPR legal framework and international practices to combat online IPR infringements. According to the expert, intellectual property is the foundation of the European Union's economy, so it’s protection is a priority for the EU. According to a 2016 study by the European Patent Office and European Intellectual Property Office, 38% of the total number of jobs in the EU and 42% of EU GDP are provided by industries which make intensive use of intellectual property.

International experts attending the workshop talked about global trends in online IPR infringements, obligations of the national and international legal framework to ensure the protection of intellectual property rights, international practices and procedures to sanction intellectual property infringements, the role of ICT companies in IPR protection and Romania's solutions to reduce IPR infringements on Internet.

The EU Project ”Support to Enforcement of the Intellectual Property Rights” in the Republic of Moldova is funded by the European Union and implemented by a Consortium of Archidata LLC (Italy), European Profiles S.C. (Greece) and Business and Strategies in Europe (Belgium). The project has a duration of two years and ends in November 2018.