On World Intellectual Property Day in Washington on 26 April, Dan Glickman, the chairman and CEO of the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA), emphasized the global significance of intellectual property, noting that it is “no longer an American issue or a pet issue of movie stars and rock stars’.
World Intellectual Property Day was launched eight years ago and is celebrated each year on 26 April. It was celebrated around the world with various events to raise awareness of the importance of intellectual property.
In a panel discussion Glickman, together with Mitch Bainwol, the Recording Industry Association’s chairman and CEO, and Steve Largent, the president and CEO of Wireless Association, took part in a discussion on “Digital Technologies: Emerging Challenges, Evolving Strategies,’ that was held at the Institute for Policy Innovation’s World Intellectual Property Day event on Capitol Hill. The contention is that many new technologies developed to tackle global problems would never see the light of day without intellectual property rights in place.
During the hour-long discussion, Glickman spoke about the evolving relationship between broadband providers and content producers in which both are working together to ensure that the Internet is providing the legitimate content that consumers want, while still protecting the innovators of intellectual property.
“As more diverse countries do increasingly sophisticated work around the world, I believe we will—and are today— seeing a rising tide of respect and support for intellectual property rights,’ said Glickman. “This is no longer an American issue or a pet issue of movie stars and rock stars. Increasingly it is something quite meaningful to a growing array of stakeholders including small businesses, young innovators, and developing governments and economies.
“There is a growing global stake in digital citizenship with so many countries sharing our objective of wanting to grow and nurture their own innovation economies. World IP Day helps to focus the spotlight on that effort and highlight just why intellectual property protections are so important to all those who create something of value with their minds and share it with the world. It truly helps remind us of the importance and connectedness we all share in our global economy.’
