Washington, DC and Ljubljana – Property Rights Alliance, in partnership with 106 think tanks and advocacy organizations in 51 countries, is proud to launch an open letter celebrating World Intellectual Property Day, addressed to the World Intellectual Property Organization’s Director-General Daren Tang. We stand with content creators and rights holders around the world to fight for stronger, more effective intellectual property rights. This year PRA is delighted to support WIPO’s theme “IP and Youth: Innovating for a Better Future.” Strong intellectual property rights help to incentivize research, boost innovation, and support recovery efforts. 

As noted by the letter:

“As millennials approach the average age for major inventions and Generation Z approaches the average age for a first patent filing, we must ensure that these generations and the future generations continue to enjoy and value a global system of robust intellectual property rights.”

“The prevalence of IP-intensive trade underscores the importance of Free Trade Agreements and the WTO-administered TRIPS agreement to expand protections and harmonize enforcement of IP rights.”

“By providing services for patents, trademarks, and other forms of IP and providing a forum for arbitration and mediation of IP disputes, WIPO can effectively assist nations in forming ideal systems and laws of their own to facilitate strong protection of IP rights.”

The protection of intellectual property rights is imperative to innovation, entrepreneurship, and economic growth. When these rights are not secure, products and their unique identifiers are subject to infringement. This reduces economic incentives to innovate or enter new markets.

Stronger intellectual property protections allow content creators to have control over their products, content, and designs, and to defend their work from those who infringe on their unique contributions. Studies have continuously shown that countries with stronger IP regimes enjoy a higher per capita GDP, experience greater overall levels of development, and contribute significantly to global biotech innovation.

IP-intensive industries are a driver of the global economy, and their rights must not be taken for granted. IP-intensive firms support 44% of total employment and contribute $7.8 trillion in value added in the United States, as well as employing 38.9% of the workforce and contributing to 96% of goods exports in the European Union.

Governments must continue to protect intellectual property rights and encourage youth to take full advantage of the rights available to them. As stated in the letter, “Recent research suggests that most inventors file their very first patent in their late 20s to early 30s. Indeed, it is part of a new trend: The average age at first patent for inventors between 2006 and 2016 was lower than that of inventors between 1996 and 2005.”

On the release, Executive Director of Property Rights Alliance Lorenzo Montanari stated, “We stand with intellectual property rights because we support innovation, creativity and a free-market economy. Today more than ever, international organizations and governments across the world need to promote policies that recognize IP rights as a key contributor to innovation and defeating COVID-19. Strong IP keeps us safe.”

The full letter can be found here: http://visio-institut.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/2022-World-IP-Day-Letter.pdf

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