A Francis Gurry Lecture on the intellectual property's role in modern economies
Mr. Francis Gurry, Director General of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) and the Secretary General of the International Community for the Protection of New Plant Species delivered a lecture of on the topic „The Role of Intellectual Property in Modern Economies“ on Thursday, 15 March 2018. The ecture's organizer was the Institute for Intellectual Property of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the UNSA Faculty of Mechanical Engineering. The Institute for Intellectual Property of Bosnia and Herzegovina has many tasks in relation to intellectual property such as, for example, copyright and related rights related to author rights in works in the field of literature, science, art, or the rights of video producers and databases in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The Institute also maintains registers of registered and recognized industrial property rights.
On this occasion, University of Sarajevo Rector, Prof. Dr. Rifat Škrijelj supported the efforts of the World Intellectual Property Organization, as well as other international actors aiming at promoting the idea that the protection of intellectual property is not a goal per se, but a tool in the function of spreading general welfare through encouraging innovation and establishing a much needed balance between that which are the needs of developed countries, economic and industrial sectors that are undoubtedly the bearers of global development, on the one hand, and the need of developing countries, facing the challenges of combating poverty and sustainable economic development on the other.
Along with the words of welcome to Mr. Gurry, Rector Škrijelj said that the work of WIPO would produce an impact on the future of Bosnia and Herzegovina and its citizens, and expressed the hope that Mr. Gurry's visit to Bosnia and Herzegovina would be an additional incentive and inspiration for the consistent implementation of the proclaimed mission of the World Organization for the intellectual property.
At the beginning of the lecture, Mr. Francis Gurry presented the work of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) under the auspices of the United Nations, which, he said, is working to ensure a balanced and efficient international intellectual property system that provides innovation and creativity for the benefit of all. The WIPO has 191 member states, including Bosnia and Herzegovina.
“We have a system through which you can apply to our application on our website and it will automatically apply in more than 150 countries around the world. That makes the entire process simpler and cheaper” said Mr. Francis Gurry, emphasizing that around 250,000 global patent applications are processed annually. He stated that they are also responsible for the implementation of a number of international treaties dealing with the intellectual property segment, “which is about 26 of the most important agreements that apply in countries around the world.”
Mr. Gurry pointed out that there are several main reasons why we have intellectual property protection, and some of the key economic aspects to provide incentives for investment, research and development, but certainly innovation, added: “This stimulus is created by creating a framework for the protection intellectual property rights for the very creator of an invention or innovator, as well as for the invention or patent itself, which in turn gives the innovator the opportunity to realize a direct benefit from it on the market.” He also said that this is crucial because information and inventions are things that can be easily reproduced, copied, so that at the time you create an invention, if you do not have a protected intellectual property over that invention, then anyone can freely use it without the innovator accomplishing it any compensation.
