Following on from our article on the future of intellectual property, we are now considering the key actions that, the government has said it will take to ensure the future of UK intellectual property laws ensuring that they are fit for the digital age. Among other things, the key actions focus on ensuring that (i) intellectual property contributes and drives economic growth, (ii) is SME friendly and (iii) is in line with international strategy.

Here are some of the proposed actions more in detail:

1) Intellectual Property and economic growth

There are some conflicting views regarding intellectual property. On one hand it is recognised that intellectual property is important to general growth and on the other intellectual property laws are seen, in some cases, as obstructing growth. The government is keen to reduce barriers to creating viable intellectual property using small firms. It is recognised that, there are missed opportunities beyond the key intellectual property owning industries. For example, cultural and commercially useful works that cannot be used because the owner of the work is not known to give permission for their use and great business ideas that cannot be turned into successful, growing businesses.

Furthermore, it is accepted that intellectual property laws must adapt to catch up with the digital world and in particular the digital copying.

The review, a brief overview of which we gave in our previous article "the future of intellectual property" recommends that, intellectual property policy balances economic objectives vis-a-vis social goals, and potential benefits for intellectual property owners against effects on consumers and other interests.

It is suggested that the IPO will publish its research programme for the coming year and set out guidance on what constitutes open and transparent evidence, in line with professional practice, in autumn 2011.

2) International priorities

It is suggested that the UK should pursue its international interests in intellectual property, particularly with respect to emerging economies such as China and India, based upon positions grounded in economic evidence. It should give priority to achieve a unified EU patent court and EU patent system. The How and when is set out in the UK’s International Strategy for Intellectual Property, which was published alongside the government’s response to the review and which we will be considering in our next articles. 

3) Copyright

It is also suggested that the government should establish a Digital Copyright Exchange (Exchange) to allow potential licensees quickly to identify and contact the relevantintellectual property owners, automating the licensing process as much as possible. The UK should also support the European Commission's proposals to establish a framework for cross-border licensing. More on the various ways the above can be achieved in our next articles.

4) Patents

It is advocated that there should be more collaboration and work-sharing between patent offices to cut backlogs in patent applications. It is suggested that this can be obtained by the IPO continuing to set challenging targets for the reduction of its patent backlogs;and publishing findings on the scale and prevalence of patent thickets, including whether they present a particular problem to SMEs seeking to enter technology sectors. A clear request for the government to resist extensions of patents into sectors which are currently excluded unless there is evidence of a benefit to innovation and growth.

5) Designs

The IPO should within the next 12 months conduct an evidence based assessment of the relationship between design rights and innovation. To achieve this, the IPO should publish research which it has commissioned on the levels of design registration in the UK compared to France and Germany, consider whether this research provides a sufficient assessment of the review's presumed relations between design rights and innovation and publish its assessment of the case.

6) SMEs and intellectual property

The IPO should draw up plans to improve accessibility to intellectual property advice and registration for SMEs, particularly to cost-efficient providers of integrated legal and commercial advice on intellectual property.

7) Intellectual property policy development

The IPO should be given the necessary powers and mandate to ensure that it focuses on its central task of ensuring that the UK's IP system promotes innovation and growth through efficient, contestable markets. The government will explore options for a future role for IPO that involve a strengthened focus on innovation and growth. A review of the Copyright Designs and Patents Act 1988 should also take place.

8) UK's international strategy for intellectual property

The strategy was published alongside the government's response to the Hargreaves review of the UK's intellectual property framework. The strategy document sets out the government's plan for responding to one of the recommendations in the Hargreaves review, namely that the UK should pursue its international interests in  intellectual property, particularly with respect to emerging economies such as China and India. The strategy document sets out the government's five-year approach to achieving an efficient, respected international intellectual property system that encourages innovation and creativity and enables the economy and society to benefit from knowledge and ideas. The implementation of the strategy will be led by the UK Intellectual Property Office.

UK should: pursue its international interests in intellectual property, particularly with respect to emerging economies such as China and India, based upon positions grounded in economic evidence. The strategy sets out the government's strategy for responding to the recommendation. It also sets out, more generally, the government's five-year approach to achieving an efficient, respected international intellectual property system that encourages innovation and creativity and enables the economy and society to benefit from knowledge and ideas.

Three key outcomes for its international strategy for intellectual property:

-  A well-functioning international framework. Reform of the international intellectual property system, including improving PCT uptake to tackle patent backlogs, and pushing for reform of EU law, particularly a unitary EU patent and patent court, and EU copyright reforms such as cross-border licensing.  

-  Good national regimes. Non-discriminatory and transparent application of IP rules within national regimes to enable level playing fields for protection and enforcement of intellectual property. By strengthening relationships with key economies like China, India and Brazil, and providing practical support to businesses operating overseas.

- Economic and technological development. An international intellectual property framework that strikes the right balance between industrial and development priorities, to help stimulate economic growth and tackle critical global challenges.