IP drives our economy. And now more than ever, when we send overseas everything we manufacture or sell, we need a strong IP system to protect innovators and their products (and services).
Yet, it seems that at every turn, some governmental entity is trying to weaken our ability to do so. Congress, the President, various states’ attorneys general, etc. Why is that?
If it’s so clear to me that IP drives our economy, why isn’t it clear to others? If we weaken our IP system, we discourage innovators and incentivize copyists, scammers and opportunists. We don’t create jobs that grow the economy and we don’t improve our way of life.
A number of commentators have written articles commenting on the neglect by the Indian government to enforce patents and, in particular, its refusal to recognize certain pharmaceutical patents. Read this one, for example, from the Economic Policy Journal, which does a great job of explaining the need for strong IP even in developing countries such as India:
[T]he bottom line is that the ideas protected by IP rights are the dynamo of growth for developed and developing countries alike. Instead of diluting IP rights, developing countries like India should recognize that strengthening IP protection is a prerequisite for attracting the foreign investment that they need to help their economies grow, create jobs, and improve their citizens’ capacity to consume.
Patent protection and enforcement must be global in a global economy.
MIMI
