The aim of this edition is to highlight the work of creators and innovators from around the world and to showcase best IP practices, including innovative approaches to the collective management of IP rights, copyright, the protection for performances and recordings, trademarks, patents and technology; in short, anything that reflects the creativity and innovation shaping music and IP today.

We also welcome essays that explore emerging challenges relating to the music industry and IP.

Here are three things to help you when considering your pitches:

• We are looking for colorful and concrete examples that showcase innovation and creation and highlight music-related IP rights and best practices. That could mean musical inventions, innovative takes on collecting royalties, performing rights, or outstanding artists using IP in new ways. We are also open to stories and interviews on niche topics that are off the beaten track.

• We are keen to receive essays or feature articles that tackle current hot-button issues and the latest conversations on IP in music. One example is the growing use of artificial intelligence (AI): AI-generated music and AI soundalikes are disrupting business models and raising questions about authorship. Another example is streaming, which may be both a blessing and a challenge. Stories may also be written from topical angles or about court cases that shed light on artists’ rights.

• Think about what might interest a globally curious audience and what specific information music creators and innovators would find useful.

If you have worked on, or are working on, any such topics, or know someone else who is, please do contact us. Once you have an idea, send an email to wipomagazine@wipo.int with your pitch.

How to pitch to WIPO Magazine

The subject line of your email should be [PITCH: Music and IP]. Outline your idea in no more than 500 words. Your pitch must communicate why your story is compelling, why it is a good fit for WIPO Magazine and why you should be the one to tell it. Be clear, concise and engaging. Your proposed top line should summarize your idea.

You may use a technique known in German as the Küchenzuruf (“kitchen call”). It suggests that the core message of a story should be so easily understood that it can be summarized in just a few words. In a simple and spontaneous shout from the sofa to the kitchen, you should be able to convey the essence of the article. “Hey, honey! There’s a new treaty that means patent applicants have to disclose the genetic resources that their invention relies on.”

Your pitch will tell us a lot about the way you write and structure your thoughts. Nail the pitch and we will be more confident about your ability to nail the story.

WIPO Magazine does not publish features just because they are relevant or important to the people involved. Your piece must have an angle, people and a payoff.

After outlining your story, let us know how you plan to tell it. What format might your piece take? Who are your characters and how might their IP stories benefit WIPO Magazine readers? What research have you completed already and what remains to be done? What expertise will you bring to the piece? It is okay if you cannot answer all of those questions yet but try to answer at least some of them and we can help with the rest.

Tell us how long you think your story should be. However, please note that length does not equal quality. We favor tight, informative features.

Read WIPO Magazine to familiarize yourself with its content and tone before pitching. If we have not worked together before, please include some information about your previous work and credentials, including links to published work, if possible.

We aim to get back to you within seven working days.

If your pitch is turned down, please do not be discouraged from pitching again.

WIPO Magazine does not accept unsolicited drafts and cannot promise publication. Pitches must be submitted in English. Articles will be published first in English, then in translation in Arabic, Chinese, French, Japanese, Portuguese, Russian, and Spanish.