[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 159 (2013), Part 4]
[Senate]
[Page 6031]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                         OBSERVING WORLD IP DAY

  Mr. LEAHY. Madam President, this Friday, April 26, is ``World IP 
Day,'' when countries around the world celebrate the role of 
intellectual property in encouraging innovation and creativity. It is 
an opportunity for us to acknowledge the authors, artists, and 
musicians who enrich our lives; the inventors whose work is 
transforming our digital economy; and creators around the world.
  Whether you are an inventor, a creative artist, or a small business 
owner protecting your brand, you deserve the benefit of your work. By 
protecting those works, we incentivize future developments that benefit 
us all. As lawmakers, our goal must be to provide strong and effective 
protections for creators, while ensuring that their creations can be 
appreciated, used, and enjoyed. This policy is central to the American 
economy, where 35 percent of our GDP is generated by IP-related 
industries. A vibrant intellectual property system fosters growth not 
only in our country, but also around the world.
  Earlier this month, I introduced legislation that would strengthen an 
innovation program created by the Patent and Trademark Office, the 
Patents for Humanity Program. The Patents for Humanity Program rewards 
a select number of exceptional innovators who apply their intellectual 
property to address global humanitarian needs. At the first Patents for 
Humanity Awards ceremony 2 weeks ago, I was proud to honor inventors 
who had worked to improve the diagnosis of devastating diseases, supply 
access to clean water, and combat the spread of dangerous counterfeit 
drugs. Our patent system protects that life-changing work and, in the 
case of the Patents for Humanity Program, helps promote its use for the 
global good.
  As we find ways to incentivize and promote widespread innovation, we 
must uphold the vital protections that allow innovators to grow and 
thrive. We must work to deter and prevent the theft of intellectual 
property, which hurts creators, costs jobs, and impedes economic 
growth. In our interconnected age, no country, or even group of 
countries, can address that problem alone. More than ever, we need to 
work together to recognize the value of intellectual property so that 
inventors and creators around the world may receive the benefit of 
their work and continue to create it.
  We must also come together to streamline processes that will help 
innovators to fuel growth in the future. Eighteen months ago, Congress 
took an important step with passage of the Leahy-Smith America Invents 
Act, which modernized our patent system for the 21st century and helped 
harmonize our laws with systems around the world. Last December, I was 
pleased to expand on those improvements with passage of the Patent Law 
Treaties Implementation Act, which will help American inventors by 
simplifying and expediting the process for obtaining patent protections 
overseas.
  There is more Congress can do to improve the patent system and 
address the problem of patent trolling, by increasing transparency and 
accountability. I intend to work in a bipartisan and bicameral manner 
on legislation that will ensure the real party in interest of a patent 
is disclosed, protect unknowing and innocent purchasers of allegedly 
infringing products from unwarranted suits, and continue to improve 
patent quality, and we will explore other means to make trolling 
activity unprofitable.
  Our intellectual property system supports the creative and inventive 
talents of our citizens and provides the vital fuel of our economy. I 
hope others will join me in celebrating World IP Day.

                          ____________________