The Technology Innovation Agency Bill was published in Government Gazette as Bill 49-2007 (hereinafter referred to as “the Bill”).  It is now open for public written submissions by stakeholders and interested parties. Public hearings will be conducted at Parliament on 15 and 16 January 2008 and submissions must reach Zelna Jansen, the Committee secretary, by no later than 10 January 2008. The address for submissions is:

c/o Zelna Jansen
Committee Secretary
Portfolio Committee on Science and Technology
3rd Floor
90 Plein Street
Cape Town
8000

Fax: (021) 403-3248
e-mail: zjansen@parliament.gov.za

The Bill was drafted in order to establish the Technology Innovation Agency (TIA) which is intended to support the State in stimulating and intensifying technological innovation and invention. 

The Bill defines an “innovation” very broadly as “the application in practice of creative new ideas, which includes the processes by which new products and services enter the market and the creation of new businesses”.  An “invention” is any discovery or improvement in respect of any process, apparatus or machine.  Note that the definition of an invention is broader than the Patents Act concept of an invention.  Although “invention” is not defined in the Patents Act, the Act expressly excludes a discovery and an improvement may in some circumstances not be considered inventive and unpatentable.  As such, the TIA is not limited to the support of only patentable technologies and can, in theory, fund technology for which no patent protection can be obtained.

TIA will be a juristic person which will function under the direction of a Board elected by a panel appointed by the Minister of Science and Technology, who will also appoint a Chief Executive Officer.

The powers and duties of TIA include:

• to provide financial and other assistance to innovators to develop technological innovations and inventions;
• to establish a company, alone or in collaboration with any person to develop or exploit technological innovations and inventions;
• to acquire any interest in any consortium or enterprise undertaking the development or exploitation of any technological innovations and inventions;
• to integrate management of different initiatives dealing with innovation, invention, incubation and diffusion in South Africa;
• to develop national capacity and infrastructure to protect and exploit intellectual property from publicly financed research;
• to finance and provide direction-setting capabilities;
• to apply for patents, apply to revoke patents, oppose grant of patents and institute infringement actions regarding patents;
• to acquire rights in or to any technological innovation, invention or patent from any person, consortium or enterprise or assign any person, consortium or enterprise any right in or to any technological innovation, invention or patent; and
• to be represented on the board of any entity that it assists.

There is very little detail on the mechanisms by which the TIA will give effect to the aims of the Bill.  These details will hopefully be included in the Regulations which are yet to be published.

The requirement that the TIA must be represented on the board of any entity that is assisted by the agency will probably be of concern to many parties seeking assistance from the TIA.

Certain terms in the Bill, such as “diffusion initiatives” and “direction-setting capabilities”, are not defined and their meaning is therefore not clear.

In addition, there is no provision in the Bill as to under what circumstances the Agency may acquire a right to a technological innovation, invention or patent from any person, consortium or enterprise.

It is hoped that these issues will be clarified after the second round of submissions to Parliament in January 2008.  Updates on the Bill will be provided regularly on this website.

Joanne van Harmelen
Spoor & Fisher