WIPO Director General Visits Washington, D.C., United States of America
April 13, 2024
WIPO Director General Daren Tang visited Washington, D.C., in the United States of America from April 10 to 12, 2024, where he met with Government and industry leaders for wide-ranging discussions on the latest developments in the U.S. and around the world in relation to intellectual property (IP) and innovation.
In a meeting with U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo and Director of the United States Patent and Trademark Office Kathi Vidal, discussions were held on the myriad challenges facing the global IP ecosystem and the need to work closely to ensure that all can benefit from it. Mr. Tang shared that the U.S. is an innovation powerhouse and had been a key partner for WIPO since its inception. He welcomed further opportunities for WIPO to work with U.S. agencies and stakeholders in building effective, vibrant and robust innovation ecosystems.
The importance of IP education and the emergence of generative AI were front and center in meetings with U.S. Congressmen Darrell Issa (California) and Hank Johnson (Georgia), Chairman and Ranking Member, respectively, of the Subcommittee on the Courts, Intellectual Property, and the Internet. Mr. Tang referred to the U.S. as a prime example of how a strong IP system fuels a vibrant economy. Chairman Issa is not only a strong proponent of the IP system, but, as the holder of 37 patents himself, has an intimate knowledge of IP. They also discussed the opportunities and challenges posed by generative AI, and the increasing merger of digital and industrial technologies.
In discussions at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Global Innovation Policy Center, Mr. Tang recalled his prior engagement with them earlier in the year and gave an overview of WIPO’s work in areas of strong interest to the GIPC. He updated the GIPC about the strong push to transform WIPO’s IP registries and services to be even more customer centric and efficient, putting the applicant even more at the center of WIPO’s processes. The team also shared the latest initiatives at WIPO relating to IP enforcement, including in the next iteration of WIPO ALERT, and the development of the Customs Recordation and Information System (CRIS). The meeting included a number of industry experts and advocates who exchanged views on how WIPO can better serve the business community.
IP enforcement was the focus of discussions at the National IPR Coordination Center, which brings together over 20 federal agencies, led by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI), with international and industry partners to coordinate law enforcement responses to the threats posed by IP crime. The meeting covered the increasing trend of counterfeiting and piracy being driven by organized crime, and the necessity of partnering to address and arrest this trend.
Mr. Tang also met with the National Congress of American Indians (NCAI) to listen to their views on the upcoming Diplomatic Conference on Genetic Resources and Associated Traditional Knowledge, as well as their perspectives on the current IP system and its future development.
Mr. Tang also visited the Entertainment Software Association (ESA), where he met CEO Stan Pierre-Louis and his team on IP issues relevant to the video games industry, which is already valued at $56.6 billion in the U.S. but is poised for much further growth. Mr. Tang and the ESA team agreed that the industry was at the forefront of a noticeable trend where the line between software and hardware is blurring, necessitating a more holistic approach to IP policy making that did not just focus on discrete IP rights, but IP as a portfolio of intangible assets critical for business success.