1 December 2010Copyright

IP Summit, December 2-3, 2010: general highlights

Let the figures speak for themselves: in two days, 150 speakers will take part in debates during 40 plenary sessions and workshops. More than 600 delegates from 45 countries will attend. At least 100 speakers will be rights holders from industry sharing their significant practical experiences of the patent and trademark systems. The remaining delegates will be made up of representatives from various international and local institutions concerned with the practice of IP law.

Since its beginning, the IP Summit has benefited from many supporters due to its unique double focus on business and regulatory matters. In 2010, the returning European Commission, European Patent Office and Office for Harmonization in the Internal Market are now joined by BusinessEurope for a true symbolic dialogue between lawmakers, system operators and user companies.

For the very first time, three different EU Commissioners will give keynote speeches at the IP Summit. Michel Barnier, in charge of the Internal Market and Services, will open the plenary at 9am on December 2. Karel de Gucht, responsible for Trade, will close the same morning sessions. His colleague Neelie Kroes, now Vice-President and Commissioner for the Digital Agenda, will pronounce the opening address on day two.

Patent and trademark reforms in Europe will be covered from various angles, as well as the IP marketplace, the fight against counterfeiting through both ACTA and field experience, issues of open innovation strategic planning, antitrust issues and IP outsourcing. There will also be industry focuses on green technologies, cloud computing, pharmaceuticals and others.

Embattled in the struggle to recover its lost growth, Europe needs a vision to remain competitive in this world. When innovation is under threat, intellectual property provides the key to unleash new prospects. The public and private sectors need to work hand in hand and open themselves to new perspectives. Thanks to the IP Summit, there’s a real-world social networking and sharing platform for this. For more information about the IP Summit 2010, please visit: www.ipsummit.info.

Interview with the organisers

Q: This is the fourth IP Summit in Brussels. How has the Summit developed since 2004, in terms of topics addressed and participation?

A: Since its inception in 2004, the IP Summit has extended its scope to all fields of intellectual property, mainly patents but also trademarks, domains, software IP, etc. Today there is a greater focus on trademarks and anti-counterfeiting, so that we have rearranged the balance between topics. It gives a complete overview of intellectual property challenges.

Our daily contacts with the world of intellectual property allow us to keep up with current developments in this field and fill the IP Summit with substantial debates. This wider coverage also stems directly from the ‘load increase’ in the IP Summit’s platform, which has become one of the most important networks in the IP world.

Speakers are increasingly enthusiastic, giving rise to a lively and very sharp discussion, followed by an audience that is also growing in volume and diversity. We have made efforts to make this event a unique occasion to share experience and best practice, and this year, we will improve this function by facilitating ‘one-to-one’ meetings between delegates and speakers.

Q: The IP Summit is a biennial event. Would its success justify it becoming annual?

A: Precisely not. We want the IP Summit to keep its ‘panoramic’ dimension and therefore believe that it won’t happen every year. However, there is still room for an in-depth vertical approach to intellectual property, one that would catch hold of a couple of industry segments’ evolutions and needs. We are therefore happy to unveil an IP Week™ in 2011: five days at the beginning of December to cover all IP-related issues of selected industrial sectors of primary importance for Europe.

This will come along with a Patent Fair™, to provide the ideal platform for networking and making business on this continent. Like the IP Summit that will return in 2012, we want the IP Week and Patent Fair in 2011 to create strong marks in the IP community.

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