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Time for that IP Tsar?

By Johanna Gibson, David Pearce, Jeremy Phillips and Ilanah Simon.

The IPKat made his feelings known on the subject of an IP Tsar last month here and here.  Since raising the subject he has received many interesting comments, both for and against, and he has been favourably impressed by the manner in which his readers have made a variety of constructive points.

The thing which most persuades him to support a call for an IP Tsar is the continuing stream of correspondence he has received from representatives of small and medium-sized businesses who feel that they are doubly at a loss.  First, they are often unable to finance the litigation, whether as claimants or defendants, which either seeks to preserve their IP protection or to preserve their freedom to trade without threat of encroaching on the IP of others.  Readers of this weblog will already be familiar, in this context, with the battles of the small entity Golden Balls Ltd against businesses many times its own size and with ample litigation resources (see eg earlier IPKat posts here and here).  Secondly, they feel that their complaints to government ministers, officials, Members of Parliament and others are futile since they receive little in response other than a sympathetic echo of their own plight.

Here's another story well worth a read.  The protagonist this time is Christine Watson, proprietor of the JOLLY HOLLY trade mark -- duly registered but somehow overlooked by Disney Inc and its licensee, character confectionery company Kinnerton.  Christine has fought valiantly and imaginatively to preserve her pitch, and her struggle once again demonstrates the existence of a gap between the laudable government aspirations and the reality on the ground.

An IP Tsar who champions IP rights, who integrates and coordinates criminal and civil law enforcement, who provides guidance and support to those who legislate, administer and quantify the results of IP, to hit heads together and encourage a little common sense, and who can help think up effective ways of enabling SMEs to finance the justifiable protection of their IP investments -- this is what we need.

Full post as published by IPKat on September 02, 2010 (boomark / email).