Meeting of IP Office Economists in Rio de Janeiro
May 13, 2010
Joint communiqué
Chief Economists and Heads of Economic Analysis units of Intellectual Property (IP) Offices held a Meeting in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil on May 13, 2010. Also present at the meeting were representatives from IP Offices and government agencies of several Latin American countries and selected economists from academia and the World Bank.
This meeting took place against the backdrop of increased worldwide demands for rigorous analysis of the economic effects of IP reforms. Responding to such demands, several national IP Offices and the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) have created Chief Economist positions and Economic Analysis units in recent years.
Meeting participants shared their experience on the conduct of economic research work in IP Offices, including organizational models, human resource strategies, access to data, and related matters. They also shared information on their respective work programs and exchanged views on current IP policies issues. The discussions identified multiple areas of common interest.
The participating agencies agreed to create a Global Network of IP Office Economists. This Network would be open to other IP Offices not represented at the meeting. WIPO volunteered to serve as the coordinator of this Network, acting as the clearing house for studies conducted by different offices using its (envisaged) IP economics web portal, facilitating joint approaches to economic analysis, and collaborating in the organization of regular meetings of the Network. Special efforts will be made to encourage greater participation by developing countries, also in light of the emphasis placed on economic studies within the WIPO Development Agenda. Several of the represented Latin American offices and government agencies that currently do not have an Economic Analysis unit expressed interest in setting up such a unit in the future.
The United States Patent and Trademark Office generously offered to host the next Meeting of IP
Office Economists in Washington, DC, envisaged for Spring 2011.