The Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOPHL) is partnering with Malaysia-based Big Bad Wolf Books Sdn. Bhd. (BBW) to promote copyright awareness and boost the local publishing industry.

The IPOPHL said its director general Josephine Santiago on 10 December inked an agreement with BBW executive director Jacqueline Ng to jointly launch programs and projects raising copyright awareness among authors, publishers and readers.

BBW, said to be the world’s largest book sale under a single retailer, is known for offering brand new books at a discounted rate as high as 50 to 90 percent in fairs held in ten countries in Asia.

“One of our main goals is to create programs to grow the local publishing industry by providing them with the tools and knowledge to jump-start their businesses,” Santiago said.

“One of the main stumbling blocks for local authors in the Philippines is that they don’t know where to start,” she added.

In the next BBW sale to be held in the Philippines on February 2020, IPOPHL said it will provide talks aimed at authors.

It will revolve around maximizing copyright value, as well as underscoring respect for copyright and related rights of creators of copyright material, the agency said.

Additionally, IPOPHL is also looking at partnering with BBW for other future projects with the same objective of developing the local book industry.

“As IPOPHL promotes creativity and innovation, reading books, from which numerous inspirations can be taken, should also be highly encouraged. Thus, BBW Books’ offering of affordable books helps us achieve the greater objective of creating a society teeming with creativity and innovation,” Santiago said.

In the Philippines, BBW fairs are held in Metro Manila, Cebu, Davao and Pampanga. IPOPHL said the company is eyeing several other locations in the country for next year.