The onset of the holiday season hasn’t stopped C4IP’s hard work! Here’s what our Coalition accomplished during the month of November:
- On November 17, ConsumerAffairs featured C4IP Executive Director Frank Cullen in an article addressing the threats of fraud and counterfeit items ahead of the holidays.
- “Frank Cullen, C4IP Executive Director, Former Vice President of U.S. Policy for the Chamber of Commerce’s Global Innovation Policy Center said that nearly 7 in every 10 consumers have been deceived into buying a counterfeit product online in the past year – many of them products that can pose physical dangers – and those numbers will likely grow during the holidays.”
- On November 14, former USPTO Deputy Director Laura Peters published an opinion essay in the Daily Signal showcasing how education around innovation principles, such as intellectual property, can promote social and economic mobility as well as societal progress.
- “If our mission in the U.S. is to make a better future for ourselves and our progeny, today’s students must be empowered with the tools to solve the challenges of our times. They must be educated on the principles that foster and protect innovation and be equipped with a solid understanding of how to actualize their innovative solutions.”
- On November 13, C4IP Co-Chair Andrei Iancu published an opinion essay in RealClearHealth identifying the manifold ongoing policy proposals that threaten American IP rights.
- “American IP rights have never been on more unstable footing. Without a course correction – soon – investors will turn to safer bets and stop funding the transformational research and development that advances life science and other critical technologies.”
- On November 11, C4IP Board Member Judge Paul Michel (ret.) published an opinion essay in IAM explaining the reforms of the Patent Eligibility Restoration Act and PREVAIL Act in detail and advocating for their passage.
- “[T]hese bills test the capacity of Congress to pass bipartisan legislation that serves the national interest. For the sake of America’s economic prosperity and national security, we should all hope Congress can achieve this goal.”
- On November 10, C4IP Co-Chairs Andrei Iancu and David Kappos published an opinion essay in Fortune underlining the importance of the ITC’s strong powers to crack down on patent theft in the wake of the recent dispute between Apple and Masimo.
- “Put simply, the ITC stops patent infringement. That’s why the ITC’s ruling – and its authority – must remain intact.”
- On November 9, 6ABC Action News in Philadelphia interviewed C4IP Executive Director Frank Cullen on the physical and economic dangers counterfeit goods pose during the holiday season. Cullen underscored the importance of passing Senator Chris Coons’ (D-DE) recently co-introduced Shop Safe Act, which, as noted in the coverage, “creates penalties for platforms that knowingly sell counterfeit goods.”
- “When you’re talking about kids and the holiday season getting toys, there could be lead, or they may be made with other unsafe materials that could cause injury…It’s also jobs, approximately 325,000 fewer jobs in the United States as a result of the impact of counterfeiting.”
- On November 9, NBC10 WJAR in Providence interviewed C4IP Executive Director Frank Cullen about the economic harms of counterfeit goods and how consumers can avoid purchasing them while holiday shopping.
- “The economic side of this does have a huge impact on our domestic economy…For instance, there’s $200 billion lost annually to U.S. businesses as a result of the sale of counterfeit goods. That’s not to mention over 750,000 fewer jobs.”
- On November 7, in advance of the Senate IP subcommittee’s Nov. 8 hearing on the PREVAIL Act, C4IP sent a letter to Subcommittee Chairman Chris Coons and Ranking Member Thom Tillis expressing strong support for the act and detailing the benefits of each of its reforms.
- “[T]he PREVAIL Act provides for significant improvements to the PTAB review proceedings, promoting efficiency and fairness, and ultimately helping to promote U.S. innovation. C4IP again applauds the committee for holding a hearing on this important topic and hopes the subcommittee and committee will continue to move forward on this critical bill.”
- On November 4, Small Business and Entrepreneurship Council President Karen Kerrigan published an opinion essay in the Duluth News Tribune spotlighting the humble origins of major companies and inventions, and the key role that secure patent rights played in their success.
- “America counts on entrepreneurs and small-business owners to launch new ideas – even the world’s next big idea. To do that, entrepreneurs need to know their inventions are protected. That’s why patents matter and why Congress should strengthen them.”
- On November 2, C4IP Co-Chair Andrei Iancu published an opinion essay in The Hill emphasizing how the erosion of patent rights undermines America’s national security and ability to compete with China.
- “China’s innovation dominance poses both national security and economic risks to the United States…To maintain national security, the United States needs to strengthen its technological capabilities – and to do that, we need to incentivize innovation, fast.”
- ICYMI: C4IP announced the creation of a grant program for intellectual property research, scholarship, and writings. The program — which provides grants of up to $25,000 — will advance C4IP’s mission to provide lawmakers data-driven recommendations to inform IP policy. More information about the application process is available here, and questions about the program should be directed to C4IP Chief Policy Officer and Counsel Jamie Simpson at jamie@c4ip.org.
- The program has been covered by IPWatchdog, Legal Scholarship Blog, and SSRN.