KT&G Recognized for Innovation

KT&G was awarded the Prime Minister’s Commendation on May 31 in recognition of its contribution to the development of national industry at the 56th Invention Day commemoration ceremony.

Hosted by the Korean Intellectual Property Office and organized by the Korea Invention Promotion Association, the event rewards individuals and organizations that have contributed to the promotion of inventions in South Korea.

This year, KT&G was recognized for its contribution to protecting national industrial technology and for the development of the intellectual property system through its unique technology development and job invention promotion policy.

KT&G CEO Baek Bok In, who took office in 2015, has emphasized the importance of technology in the tobacco industry and focused on securing intellectual property. In 2016, KT&G established a special division for intellectual property. It has also expanded its employee proprietary information and inventions agreement for researchers to encourage patent applications.

In 2018, KT&G built its own computer system to effectively manage the company’s intellectual property rights. As a result of these and other actions, KT&G’s patent applications rose from 43 in 2016 to 1,203 in 2020.

“Last year, our researcher received the Prime Minister’s Commendation at the 55th Invention Day ceremony, but not stopping there, KT&G’s technological capabilities were recognized once again this year,” said Chi-Bum Oh, senior managing director at KT&G, in a statement. “In the future, we will focus on technological innovation and the management of intellectual property rights to enhance corporate value.”