INTA plans for November annual meeting in Houston

The International Trademark Association’s (INTA) 2021 annual meeting will be held in Houston, Texas from November 15-19 this year, incorporating virtual elements alongside the in-person event.

The conference had previously been scheduled to take place in San Diego from May 1-5, but has been pushed back due to the uncertainty around COVID-19.

Last year saw the cancellation of the in-person annual meeting in Singapore, with an entirely virtual event held in November instead.

WIPR is the exclusive publisher of the INTA Daily News, which will be published throughout November’s annual meeting.

INTA’s leadership meeting, which was combined with the 2020 annual meeting last November, will be held separately as a virtual event on May 3-7, 2021.

The pandemic caused major disruption to the IP conference schedule last year, with all major events being either cancelled or held virtually.

Speaking exclusively to WIPR today, February 5, INTA CEO Etienne Sanz de Acedo said his reading was that “most INTA members are looking forward to meeting in-person” as soon as possible.

“After a very difficult year, we want to bring some optimism to our members. We think there is a very good chance we will have an in-person meeting,” Sanz de Acedo said.

The contingency, should this not be possible, is to hold an entirely virtual event similar to last year’s, he said. But the plan remains to have a “hybrid event with virtual components”, which will also be available to members attending in person.

Sanz de Acedo said he expected registration for the annual meeting to open around the time of the virtual leadership meeting, scheduled to be held May 3-7.

Commenting on the choice of venue, the INTA CEO said: “We love San Diego, but our members are also going to love Houston. The most important thing is to bring our members back together in-person.”

Did you enjoy reading this story? Sign up to our free daily newsletters and get stories sent like this straight to your inbox

Today’s top stories

Lewis Silkin hires Neil Parkes as partner

EU-wide study shows strong link between IP and business success

Singapore unveils general fair use exception in copyright reforms

Exclusive: INTA CEO on the ‘hybrid’ Houston meeting