International conference "Intellectual property as a tool for business and economic growth in the EAEU countries", Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan

Evgeny Alexandrov, Ph.D., Senior Partner, Head of Legal, Trademark and Design Practice (Gorodissky & Partners, Moscow), Albert Ibragimov, Partner, Russian & Eurasian Patent Attorney, Regional Director (Gorodissky & Partners, Kazan), Irina Zhigalova, Partner, Russian Trademark Attorney, Regional Director (Gorodissky & Partners, Nizhny Novgorod), Cholpon Dootalieva, Kyrgyz Patent Attorney, Regional Director (Gorodissky & Partners, Bishkek), Yaroslava Gorbunova, Partner, Russian Trademark Attorney, Senior Lawyer and Dmitry Yakovlev, Russian Patent Attorney, Eurasian Patent Attorney (both - Gorodissky & Partners, St. Petersburg) took part in the international conference "Intellectual Property as a Tool for Business and Economic Growth in the EAEU Countries", organized by LES Russia.

The international conference was attended by representatives of the Eurasian Patent Office, Rospatent, Ministry of Science, Higher Education and Innovations of the Kyrgyz Republic, Federal Customs Service of the Russian Federation, Eurasian Economic Commission, Eurasian Organization for Economic Cooperation, JSC "Science Fund", scientific and educational institutions from Russia, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan, as well as leading law firms from Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan.

Within the framework of a rich business program, participants discussed current issues of legal protection, commercialization of intellectual property (IP) and mechanisms for ensuring rights in the countries of the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU).

Particular attention was given to the role of IP as a driver of the EAEU economy. Issues of harmonization of legislation and effectiveness of law enforcement, development of innovative ecosystems, and support for small and medium-sized enterprises through tax and financial incentives were discussed.

A significant part of the discussions focused on intellectual property as a business asset — from registration to monetization. Participants spoke about the management of intangible assets of companies and the role of professional intermediaries in their commercialization. Issues regarding the use of royalty rates as a tool for IP valuation, as well as the importance of intellectual property in attracting investments and mergers and acquisitions (M&A) transactions were examined. Experts elaborated on the practice of technology licensing, typical company errors, and the use of patents as a tool for protecting technological businesses.

In the context of brand protection in the regional market, the work of customs authorities in conditions of parallel importation of goods was discussed, as well as measures to combat the circulation of counterfeit products in Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan. An overview and comparison of judicial practices in Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan regarding intellectual property were presented along with an analysis of 2026 trends.

A separate session was dedicated to the interaction between artificial intelligence (AI) and intellectual property. Conference participants discussed issues of protecting algorithms, software, data, and know-how. The patentability of AI-based solutions, as well as copyright for results generated by neural networks were considered. The discussion also touched on selecting the optimal legal protection regime, risks associated with using open-source components (open-source) and training datasets, as well as properly formalizing rights for their further protection and commercialization.

Additionally, within the session on patents, innovations, and technological development, the use of patents for business protection and entry into foreign markets was discussed. Experts spoke about the commercialization of university and industrial developments, management of rights to results of intellectual activity (RIA) from universities, as well as barriers for innovative companies and technology licensing practices.

The conference in Bishkek became an important platform for dialogue between government, science, and business, confirming the status of intellectual property as a strategic asset for the economic growth of the EAEU countries.