PARIS - In a special report on intellectual property rights (IPRs), the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) warns that the problem of counterfeiting and piracy is growing “at a more dangerous rate than ever,” according to a press release by the ICC.
In a “call to action,” ICC urges governments to take positive steps to make the IP system work as a tool for growth for their countries and communities, and to end the present estimated $600 billion drain on the global economy caused by IP fraud, which is undermining development, the market system and international trade and investment.
The 24-page report entitled “Intellectual Property: Source of Innovation, Creativity, Growth and Progress”, is one of a series of products produced by BASCAP (Business Action to Stop Counterfeiting and Piracy), which was formed by ICC to emphasize the scope of the problem.
Most people are familiar with the commonest tools used to protect IP: copyright for books, patents for inventions, trademarks for symbols that distinguish particular products, and so on. All are vulnerable to pirates. These days, there is an increasing amount of investment in research and development resulting in intellectual assets which are “less tangible” than physical products, notes ICC Secretary General, Mr. Guy Sebban, in a preface to the report, and more vulnerable to theft.
ICC’s continuous aim is to “create an environment in which intellectual property is respected and protected,” said Mr. Sebban. To this end, the ICC recently convened a meeting of business leaders from some of the world’s top companies to form a unique coalition to take the fight against the theft of intellectual property to the highest international level.