Waikato Business News February/March 2021

24 WAIKATO BUSINESS NEWS February/March 2021
Rebuilding the Waikato visitor economy
The number one question we are asked every day is “how is the
Waikato tourism sector going?”.
Overall, the Waikato
region is not as significantly
impacted
as other areas experiencing
closure or hibernation of
tourism businesses and job
losses across the sector. We
stand in solidarity with our
fellow tourism regions and
appreciate the efforts of New
Zealanders to ‘Do Something
New, New Zealand’ by travelling
the length and breadth of
Aotearoa.
Although the Waikato is
experiencing a decline in overall
visitor expenditure, our
strong domestic destination
proposition, summer calendar
of events and the solid return
of conferences, meetings and
exhibitions, has helped us buffer
the impacts.
We are also fortunate
enough to have over 2.65 million
people living within three
hours’ drive of Hamilton and
Waikato, making us an attractive
short-break destination.
Before Covid-19, 75 percent
of our visitor market was
domestic – event goers, conference
attendees, friends and
family, alongside leisure and
business travellers.
With such a geographically
diverse region, our rebound as
a tourism sector varies across
Waikato. Hamilton is currently
experiencing the fastest turnaround
with strong growth
across accommodation, hospitality
and retail with increased
visitor numbers. However, the
communities of Matamata and
Waitomo are suffering without
the presence of international
travellers.
It has been estimated that
42 percent of New Zealand’s
visitor economy comes from
international tourism and
there is an expected gap of
$12.9 billion in visitor expenditure.
Domestic travellers
spend on average $155 per
day and, when they return,
international visitors spend on
average $232 per day, which
is over three-times more than
local residents at $74 per day.
Tourism remains vital to the
region’s post-Covid recovery
with every $178,000 of tourism
spend, which equates to
40 international visitors or 480
domestic overnight trips, creating
a job.
To help the region’s visitor
economy restart and rebound,
we have worked harder than
ever to build demand and
attract additional domestic
visitors to the region. For the
first-time, we’ve marketed
the region throughout the
Christmas/New Year period
to encourage New Zealanders
to visit our magical region,
efforts normally reserved for
the shoulder seasons due to
being busy with international
travellers over summer. From
our partnership with Tourism
New Zealand’s ‘Do Something
New, NZ’ campaign, through
to our own ‘It’s Just Magic’
video-led digital campaign, we
are excited about the results
being delivered.
We have been proud of the
results from our work in the
media/PR and content partnership
space as well, with our
regional feature in this January’s
Cuisine magazine and the
December issue of NZ House
and Garden. We have been
gaining a lot of media coverage
across the Stuff Travel
network, NZ Herald Travel
and Newshub. This includes
digital, radio and metro airports
advertising as well as a
second edition of the ‘Never
Have I Ever’ Neat Places city
guides. We have a number of
locals sharing their insider
tips to places to eat, drink and
explore in Hamilton city.
We know that hosting major
and business events are crucial
to lead the economic and
social recovery of the Waikato
region. National research indicates
that up to one-third of
domestic travel is primarily
driven by people looking to
participate in events. Based on
this, we launched our Summer
Events campaign which utilises
digital marketing in our
main drive markets, supported
by a printed 2021 Waikato
Summer Events Guide which
was an insert in key daily and
community newspapers in
the Central North Island. The
Waikato has a jam-packed
events calendar to encourage
locals and the domestic traveller
to visit our region. The new
$3.75m Regional Events Fund
is now open for expressions
of interest. This fund will be
spread over 3-4 years and collectively
covers the regions of
Waikato, Rotorua, Taupō and
Ruapehu. The fund will help
activate our Major Events
Strategy, which was completed
two years ago to help drive
TELLING WAIKATO’S STORY
> BY JASON DAWSON
Chief Executive,
Hamilton & Waikato Tourism
domestic visitation and grow
our existing event portfolio.
As a non-ski destination,
we know we will have to work
harder to build demand and
attract the domestic market
during winter. We are excited
with the return of Fieldays in
June 2021 which will provide
the region with a much-needed
economic injection during our
traditionally quieter months.
In closing, I want to
acknowledge the outstanding
contribution and sacrifice
for all the hotel staff who are
working at our three Managed
Isolation Facilities. These
people have sacrificed so
much and are working on the
frontline to help protect New
Zealanders. It has been disappointing
to hear some stories
of the stigma and poor treatment
they have received from
members of our community.
They are part of our tourism
whānau and need to be supported,
cared for, thanked and
welcomed by all of us.
When is it safe to disclose
your invention?
When you have an idea
for a new invention,
it’s only natural
you’d want to share it.
Discussing your product
or process with others can
provide valuable feedback
and help you work through
any issues or concerns. But
if you want to turn your idea
into a profitable business, it’s
essential to consider intellectual
property protection
before disclosing details.
Implications of disclosure
To secure a patent and/or registered
design, the product or
process in question must be
‘novel’ – ie, new or not previously
known. Once unprotected
information has been
made available to the public
on a non-confidential basis,
however, it is free to be used
by anyone and cannot be patented,
so disclosing details of
your invention could hinder
your chances of commercial
success. Common scenarios
where this might occur include
submitting your design to
a competition, crowdfunding
for investment, releasing
teasers on social media,
or discussing it with others
online or in-person.
While it is obvious to see
how public disclosure can be
avoided, in some instances
it may be necessary to share
details of your developments
with a third party prior to filing
a patent or design application.
For instance, when hiring people
to assist in developing your
prototype such as draughtsperson,
engineers, or designers;
when working with suppliers,
accountants, manufacturers
and distributors; and when
engaging with potential buyers
or investors.
These types of disclosure
can also invalidate a subsequent
patent or design registration
as disclosure of information
to anyone (even only
a single person) might be
deemed a public disclosure if
there are no agreed constraints
on how that information can
subsequently be disseminated.
Registered Patent Attorneys
like those at James & Wells
are bound by law to keep client
information confidential,
so it is safe to disclose your
information to them without a
written agreement.
Which tools can help?
Confidentiality – or non-disclosure
– agreements can be
used in situations when it is
necessary to disclose details
of your invention. A disclosure
in breach of an obligation of
confidence will not invalidate
a patent or registered design
application. Also, you may
have a legal remedy against
anyone who discloses details
of your developments in
breach of the confidentiality
agreement.
New Zealand law also
offers a grace period for public
disclosure and/or use allowing
an invention to be made public
(under certain conditions) provided
that a complete patent
application is filed within 12
months of disclosure.
However, grace period provisions
should not be relied on
as a general strategy, particularly
in companies seeking
to obtain protection in multiple
jurisdictions, as not every
country offers grace periods
and, if they do, the requirements
and details can differ.
Disclosure following the filing
of a patent application.
Even after a patent application
has been filed, disclosing
your product may limit your
future options. You might
continue to make improvements
or modifications to
your invention and may even
discover new uses that were
unforeseen and therefore not
covered in the initial patent
application. These developments
must also be protected
by a further patent application
before being disclosed.
If you need more time to
develop your invention before
filing a complete specification
or before incurring the costs
of overseas applications, it is
sometimes possible to extend
the deadline by post-dating
a patent application by up to
six months and forfeiting your
original application date.
An alternative to buy more
time is to withdraw your application
and re-file it at a later
date. However, these options
are only available if there has
been no public disclosure, use
or sale of your product before
the post-dated/new filing date.
What should you do?
The most prudent advice is
not to make non-confidential
disclosures of your product or
process prior to filing a patent
or design application, and even
once a patent or design application
has been filed.
However, if commercial
realities necessitate public
disclosure, use or sale of
your product, then options
are available but it is essential
that you obtain further
legal advice to minimise your
risks and maximise your
opportunities.
INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY ISSUES
> BY BEN CAIN
Ben Cain is a Senior Associate at James & Wells and a Resolution
Institute-accredited mediator. He can be contacted at 07 957 5660
(Hamilton), 07 928 4470 (Tauranga) and benc@jaws.co.nz.