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The tenth edition of ICC’s popular “Intellectual Property Roadmap for Business and Policy Makers” was released today, with updated information on all the major IP issues including patents, trademarks, copyright issues and discussions of less established areas such as the protection of databases and genetic resources.

“It would have been difficult to imagine at the time that a decade later the publication would have gone through ten editions, been translated into five languages, and be widely recognized as providing a unique overview of key developments in intellectual property (IP) policy much appreciated by the business community and policy makers worldwide,” said David Koris, Chair of the ICC IP Commission.

“The preface to the first edition noted that ‘intellectual property had become a key issue for businesses and policy makers,’” Mr Koris added. “This is undoubtedly truer today than ever before.”

The highly successful ICC report is widely read by business, policy, and legal professionals worldwide, both within and outside ICC's international membership. Published annually from 2000 to 2008, the IP Roadmap is now revised every two years and is translated into Chinese, Spanish, Arabic, and Portuguese.

“In this tenth edition, we have integrated significant new developments in the IP field, such as increased cooperation by patent offices to address the patent backlog and approached the important issue of technology transfer in a more holistic manner, including in the area of climate change,” said Ron Myrick, Chair of the task force which prepared the publication. “We have also increased our focus on topics which are receiving more attention, such as client privilege for professional IP advice and domain names.”

The latest edition addresses cross cutting issues such as enforcement, problems in international litigation and on the Internet; the arbitration and mediation of IP disputes; counterfeiting and piracy; and the exhaustion of IP rights.

The interaction between IP and other policy areas such as economic development, the environment, technology development and transfer, competition policy, the use of open source software and data privacy are also examined at length.

In an introduction to the new book, Mr Koris and ICC Secretary General Jean Rozwadowski write that the most striking changes in the IP policy landscape over the last decade resulted from the impact of new technologies on society and business.

“The spread of digital technologies and Internet connectivity has dramatically changed the way in which businesses develop, exploit, and protect their intellectual property,” the two men wrote. “On-line distribution, marketing and infringement, domain names, cross-border technology development through electronic communication, and new business models on the Internet are but some of the pioneering opportunities and challenges raised by these new technologies.”

Click here to read ICC’s “Intellectual Property Roadmap for Business and Policy Makers”

ICC NewsAlert, 7 April 2010