WIPO’s Kamil Idris on protecting intellectual property rights

VentureOutsource.com recently caught up with Dr. Kamil Idris, director general for the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) based in Geneva. (http://www.wipo.int)

In this exclusive interview, read what Dr. Idris says about transferring intellectual property (IP) across borders, managing against potential IP pitfalls and ways company executives can mitigate risk of IP theft, ways to develop and manage your company's IP in multiple jurisdictions, and more. Transcripts from that discussion follow.

VentureOutsource.com: Globalization is influencing the way companies outsource their product contract manufacturing and the ways in which companies manage their supply chains. As company operations become more extended, new offshoring contract manufacturing destinations are emerging. With regards to creating a patent system that promotes and enhances local economies, what suggestions does the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) have for emerging outsourcing destinations?

Idris: The general message that intellectual property (IP) is an important tool for development, particularly in an economic context in which knowledge, information and ideas are the drivers of economic growth, is relevant to all countries.

In terms of how this is applied and translated into practical benefits is determined by a number of factors including the national policy objectives of a country; the level of political commitment to IP for development, the general level of awareness of the potential of the IP system and of the need to respect IP rights in all quarters of society, the existing legislative and operational infrastructure that is available, the number of skilled IP professionals as well as the existence of an enabling policy environment that encourages innovation and creativity.

VentureOutsource.com: What is being done to address intellectual property pitfalls as a result of globalization?

Idris: Intellectual property pitfalls resulting from globalization can be identified as piracy and counterfeiting, and increased backlogs in the processing of patent applications. Another challenge resulting from globalization is the need to focus greater resources and attention on IP training and the development of IP capacity and human resources.

The communications revolution has also posed significant challenges. It has facilitated an escalation in copyright piracy as creative works can now be distributed, with or without the authorization of the right holder, across the globe by the click of a mouse. Similarly, improved communications have facilitated the massive growth in the manufacture and distribution of counterfeit goods. The human, social, and economic costs of piracy and counterfeiting are enormous and concerted efforts by all stakeholders are required to meaningfully tackle this multi-faceted problem. WIPO plays an important role in tackling these problems at various levels.

Dr. Kamil Idris
Director General
World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO)

The WIPO Copyright Treaty (WCT) and the WIPO Phonograms and Performances Treaty (WPPT) are a major step forward in bringing the international copyright framework into the digital age. These treaties establish minimum levels of protection for owners of copyright-protected material in the digital environment. WIPO's Advisory Committee on Enforcement (ACE) also plays an important role as a forum for countries to exchange experiences and to identify opportunities for greater coordination of enforcement procedures.

In addition to the legislative advice it provides, in all aspects of IP, including enforcement issues, WIPO organizes and runs training programs, workshops and seminars both for users of the system and for those who administer IP systems, including judges and customs officials.

Improved communications has also created enormous opportunities in terms of improving access to scientific and technological information contained in patent documents, for example. Increasingly, national patent offices are hosting digitized collections of patent data. This largely untapped resource has the potential to significantly boost economic and technological development by offering easy access to detailed and highly relevant technical information which is useful in identifying appropriate technologies and opportunities for product development.

Globalization has fuelled the search for new export markets for new and improved products and technologies. As a consequence, the volume of international patent applications has exploded, placing greater pressure on various patent offices around the world. Incremental workload at certain patent offices in some cases has increased faster than their capacity to examine patent applications.

For example, the USA had more than 900,000 patents pending in 2005. The Japanese Patent Office had more than 800,000 patents pending in 2005. The added pressure under which many patent offices are operating has highlighted the extent of duplication of effort in the system.

While the number of patent applications pending examination differs significantly from one office to another, it is important to find common ground within the international community on how to overcome these bottlenecks. This is clearly a priority for users of the system who are seeking affordable and efficient IP services and WIPO is providing a forum for these discussions.

Growing recognition of the pivotal importance of IP as a strategically important economic policy instrument has also triggered growing demand for assistance in building IP infrastructural capacity and in training specialists for national IP administration systems. Moreover, as stakeholders become increasingly aware of IP's commercial importance, so demand for training courses on IP for business is growing. There is an urgent need for additional resources to be devoted to the development of the IP human resource capacity, in particular, of developing countries and economies in transition to a market economy.