Filipinnovation, the brand name for the Philippine National Innovation Strategy to foster a culture of innovation that will make the country globally competitive, recently announced several “innovations” of its own as part of the celebration of its second anniversary.

Foremost of these new innovations for the Filipinnovation project developed by both government and private sector organizations is the offering of fiscal incentives to pioneer companies that are already part or will be part of the Filipinnovation Network. Under the Investment Priority Plan 2009 or IPP 2009, innovators can claim pioneer status that will allow them to operate for six years tax-free.

During a media briefing for the project’s second anniversary, Board of Investments (BoI) and Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA) board member Francisco Ferrer said the pioneer status and corresponding tax incentive also includes duty-free importation of materials from the start of a product’s innovation.

Aside from the fiscal incentives, also announced during the media briefing is the launch of a new electronic version of Filipinnovation Magazine, which will contain progress updates will be given by members of the Filipinnovation network covering the four major aspects of innovation: human capital, business incubation and acceleration, public policies, and the Filipino mind-set.

The electronic magazine will specifically feature articles from the Board of Investments, Commission on Information and Communications Technology, the Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines, Asian Institute of Management Policy Center, and IBM Philippines, among many others.

One of the technology companies supporting the Filipinnovation initiative, IBM Philippines has also recently opened its first “innovation center” located at the ground floor of the IBM building in the University of the Philippines-Ayala Land TechnoHub.

IBM Philippines Chief Technologist Lope Doromal Jr. said the facility aims to be a testing ground for small and medium businesses or SMBs. “The Innovation Center allows these SMBs to test their different applications on different platforms, whether it’s Windows, Unix or Linux without making costly investments on their own,” Doromal points out. “Its UP location is also ideal and beneficial not just for businesses but also for educational institutions that need to keep themselves updated with the latest on IT development.”

Department of Science and Technology Undersecretary Fortunato Dela Peña lauded the IBM initiative and describes it “as a welcome development that will reinforce all four pillars of Filipinnovation namely to increase industry productivity; to ensure an innovative environment and; to shape the national mind-set for a competitive innovation agenda.”