The government has announced plans to modernise intellectual property legislation, with the intention of aiding growth and adding billions of pounds to the economy.
Following an independent review by Professor Hargreaves, the coalition has agreed to accept all ten recommendations on intellectual property, which could benefit the economy by up to £7.9bn, it is estimated.
Business secretary Vince Cable said: “The government is focused on boosting growth and the Hargreaves review highlighted the potential to grow the UK economy. By creating a more open intellectual property system, it will allow innovative businesses to develop new products and services, which will be able to compete fairly in the UK’s thriving markets for consumer equipment.”
Among the proposed changes is the creation of a digital marketplace, where copyright licenses could be bought and sold. It is thought this could generate an extra £2bn a year for the UK economy by 2020.
A new intellectual property crime strategy has been published to outline how domestic IP crimes, such as infringement of copyright, can be addressed to help firms avoid financial losses. Meanwhile a new international strategy detailed a five year vision to shape international IP to support innovation and growth, and overcome the patent backlogs which cost the global economy up to £7.4bn each year.
In reaction to the government’s announcement, Guy Bailey, principal policy adviser at the CBI, said:
“A simple, effective IP regime is particularly important for smaller firms, which lack the capacity that larger businesses have to protect and profit from their ideas. The government’s recognition that they need to reach out to small businesses is a particularly welcome provision within the broader package of proposals.”