IP theft costs US economy up to $600bn annually, report says

IP theft could be costing the US economy up to $600 billion annually, according to a report released by a public-private partnership.

The Commission on the Theft of American Intellectual Property released the 2017 update of its “IP Commission Report” on Monday, February 27. The commission released its first report in 2013.

Its role is to document and assess the causes, scale and major dimensions of international IP theft as they affect the US.

The commission also proposes appropriate US policy responses that would mitigate future damage and obtain greater enforcement of IP rights.

“IP theft pervades international trade in goods and services due to lack of legal enforcement and national industrial policies that encourage IP theft by public, quasi-private, and private entities,” the report said.

The commission estimated that the annual cost to the US economy of counterfeit goods, pirate software and the theft of trade secrets “continues to exceed $225 billion” and “could be as high as $600 billion annually”.

It added that the US has suffered over $1.2 trillion in economic damage since the publication of the original IP commission report in 2013.

The commission’s adopted recommendations include to enforce a “strict supply chain accountability” for the US government, and to strengthen US diplomatic priorities for IP protection.

It also suggested increasing resources for the FBI and Department of Justice when examining trade secrets theft.

In its conclusion, the commission said that “the US government has the capability and resources to address this problem. President Donald Trump should make IP theft a core issue in the early months of his administration”.

It added: “If the makeup of this commission is any suggestion, there exists broad bipartisan support for addressing IP theft and safeguarding the competitive advantages of US firms, entrepreneurs, and workers.”

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