Intellectual Property Promotes Breakthroughs in Cancer Prevention, Detection and Treatment

London, 14 May 2013: At a Cancer Prevention Week roundtable in London, IP consortium Ideas Matter today announced figures demonstrating the value of inventions in developing new ways to detect and treat cancer. European Patent Office data released this morning, during Cancer Prevention Week shows nearly 15,000 patents in this area have been filed since the year 2000. More than 70% of the inventors were European, and their innovations cover a range of devices, medicines and technologies:

New drugs - 47.1%
Biotech solutions - 31.6%
New organic chemicals - 17.8%
Medical - 2.4%
Measurement - 1.1% devices

Cancer continues to be the number one cause of death across Europe with almost a third of people dying of the disease. At the roundtable organised by Ideas Matter in London this morning, leading figures from across the healthcare industry met to examine trends and new innovations to treat the disease. These included individualised medicines, targeted radiation techniques, computerised detection and surgical devices and improved scientific collaboration across many different fields. The event also examined how intellectual property is helping to encourage and fund these innovations. Patents play an important role in helping to secure vital R&D funding, protecting new healthcare technologies, and promoting breakthroughs in oncology. Small companies (even individual inventors) and academic institutions are well represented among the European patent filers in this area, not just the large well-known companies.

Today´s event included organisations of all sizes from a range of fields, including:

Amgen - biotechnology pioneer focused on delivering innovative human therapeutics
a medical device company committed to improving patient lives
Barts Cancer Institute - a professor from the Centre for Tumour Biology, discussed the future of cancer research
Microsoft Research Cambridge - gave a demonstration of a Kinect pilot for hands-free manipulation of scans/Xrays at St Thomas surgery
Philips - presented an oncology patent landscape and an animation of their Magnetic Resonance Image-Guided Drug Delivery
IBA - devices and software developer for cancer treatment by proton beam therapy

All concluded that IP plays a vital role in helping to push their research and innovations forward. Allen Dixon, Director, Ideas Matter said, "Cancer continues to be a serious health issue across Europe and the globe, and tackling this disease will require ground breaking, innovative and imaginative leaps in invention. The freedom required to develop these breakthrough ideas can only be delivered in an environment that values and protects ideas".

WORLD INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY DAY - PROMOTING THE NEXT GENERATION OF IDEAS

London, 26 April 2013: World Intellectual Property (IP) Day is an annual opportunity to discuss the value of ideas, and to examine the importance that innovation has in every aspect of our daily lives. Both on the international scene through today's World IP Day events, and through an exciting Ideas Matter event that we will host shortly, people are getting the chance to find out more about the role that IP has in helping to encourage and support innovation.

Intellectual property is "an enabler," the Director-General of the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) Francis Gurry explained to the CCAP Congress in Istanbul, Turkey, this week. "Why do we have intellectual property? To create an incentive for people to invest in innovation. We need to be more innovative in this world, for example, than the microbes. In a densely populated, highly urbanized world, where germs spread like wildfire, we need to be more innovative. We need investment in research and development. And intellectual property is an enabler for that sort of investment."

Healthcare is one of many areas where IP is helping to encourage research and development and to create a 'virtuous circle' of investment in innovation. As cancer rates so far have outstripped our attempts to defeat the disease, finding the best ways to prevent, detect and treat cancer is entirely dependent on new ideas and innovation. The needed solutions in this area can only be realised in an environment that gives researchers and inventors the funding and the freedom to fail, try again and eventually succeed.

On Tuesday 14thof May, Ideas Matter will be bringing together experts from a broad range of research areas and organisations including the Barts Cancer Institute, the Microsoft Research Centre and UK SME Anaxsys, to discuss developments and trends in dealing with cancer, and the role that IP is playing in the innovations in this area. I look forward to sharing the results of that roundtable with you!

Allen Dixon, Director, Ideas Matter

IP AND INNOVATION

London, 4 April 2013: The Times recently published a supplement looking at the importance of Intellectual Property and its role in the future of British Business. Many of the points made certainly seem to echo our own beliefs here at Ideas Matter.

In the article "Don't Learn Lessons the Hard Way" Ajeet Minhas, Advisor at Minhas & Dixon, points to the lack of IP awareness among smaller companies. "There is an urgent need to increase awareness of IP among SMEs and microbusinesses. IP, if properly pinpointed, protected and strategically positioned, can give a start-up company a fighting chance to gain a competitive edge."

For small businesses getting started or medium sized enterprises looking to get ahead, it is imperative to have IP protection. By protecting their brand and products, companies can safeguard their reputation, revenue stream, market positioning and ultimately their future.

On the whole, small firms tend to rely more heavily on IP than larger firms. SMEs file more patents and trademarks relative to their assets and number of employees. Furthermore, patent applications and issued patents speed up venture capital funding for start-up companies by 76 percent, and lead to more investors, larger amounts of investment, and a greater likelihood of achieving an initial public offering.

In the supplement, technology and business journalist Joanna Goodman highlights the importance of IP to the UK economy. "The UK has long been considered a hub of innovation. Intangibles represent more than 10 percent of our economy."

As these helpful articles remind us, IP is the bridge that connects innovation with economic growth. In today's knowledge-based economy, individuals and companies of all sizes across the globe are increasingly dependent on IP to enable them to fulfill their passions and achieve their goals. Companies that rely on IP are boosting today's economies through creating jobs, growing GDP, driving technical innovations and inspiring the next generation of entrepreneurs.

Not only in the UK, but in any country wishing to stay competitive, the future very much depends on the steps taken to protect innovative ideas. This is a good reminder that businesses of all sizes and across all industries need to be aware of the importance of IP!

WORLD LEADERS FOCUS ON THE BENEFITS OF INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY FOR INNOVATION

Davos, Switzerland, January 2013: World government and business leaders gathering for the World Economic Forum (WEF) this month will have issues of intellectual property (IP) front-and-centre at a session discussing ways to ensure that the IP system continues to boost innovation all over the world. As the WEF working council on the IP system explained, "The IP system is more important than ever in providing the framework to foster new products and cultivate new inventions that are instrumental in creating the next generation of jobs, investments and growth."

WEF's annual competitiveness reports consistently demonstrate the link between robust IP protections and economic competitiveness. As the International Chamber of Commerce points out, intellectual property protection is identified in the WEF surveys as one of the key national 'institutions' within which individuals, companies and governments interact to generate income and wealth in the economy.

The countries that are perceived as having the strongest intellectual property protection are routinely found to be among the most economically competitive countries in the WEF surveys. Those perceived as having the weakest IPR systems tend to rank among the bottom for growth and competitiveness. In the 2009-2010 WEF survey, for example, there was again a high degree of correlation (r=0.86) between a country's intellectual property ranking and its overall competitiveness ranking for all 133 surveyed countries.

Political, business and NGO leaders participating in the WEF discussion make clear that IP has many important economic and societal benefits not just for developing countries, but also the developing world:

"The power to innovate is the power to lead; by design and by
solution. IP rights empower us to continuously build upon human
knowledge, raising the collective prospects for all corners of the
world." __David Kappos, Undersecretary of Commerce for
Intellectual Property; Director, United States Patent and Trademark
Office (USPTO), USA

"A well-functioning intellectual property system provides the
potential for technology to profoundly improve the lives of the poor
and marginalized all over the world." __James Moody, Co-Chair,
Global Access in Action, Australia

IDEAS MATTER SPEAKS OUT AT IP SUMMIT 2012 ON THE IMPORTANCE OF PATENTS FOR INNOVATION, THE ECONOMY AND SOCIETY

Brussels, 6 December 2012: Allen Dixon, Director of Ideas Matter, will join Margot Fröhlinger, Principal Director, European Patent office and other government and company leaders in a roundtable discussion on patent reform at this year’s IP Summit 2012.

The panel, which also includes Dr. Jürgen Koch, Head of Corporate Intellectual Property, Bosch Group, and Mark Guetlich, Director of Patent Policy & External Affairs at the US Patent and Trademark Office, will discuss issues such as reforms of the international patent system, how these will affect industry, and how better public awareness of the importance of intellectual property (IP) can contribute to patent reform.

In today’s knowledge-based economy, companies and individuals across the globe increasingly depend on IP to help fulfill their passions and achieve their goals. For many individuals, IP spurs creativity, attracts funding and rewards innovation. Companies that rely on IP are boosting today’s economies by creating jobs, growing GDP, driving innovation and inspiring the next generation of entrepreneurs.

Innovations that are protected by patents are worth on average between 180 - 240% more than those that aren’t protected. Companies that protect their innovations using patents and other forms of IP can also significantly increase their market valuation, turnover, investment and employee growth. Mr. Dixon will be detailing these benefits of IP in his remarks, and will be available for interviews during the Summit.

Taking Stock: How Global Biotechnology Benefits from Intellectual Property Rights

Innovation and investment in new pharmaceutical and biotechnology advancements benefit from intellectual property rights (IPR) protection in both the developed and developing world, according to a recent study sponsored by the Biotechnology Industry Organisation (BIO). According to researchers Meir Perez Pugatch, David Torstensson and Rachel Chu, who have reviewed a substantial amount of economics literature and contributed their own additional research:

IPRs, especially patents, are actively facilitating and contributing to upstream and downstream biotechnology activities in both developed and developing countries.
Not only mature economies but also major emerging economies are making growing use of the patent system to facilitate biotechnology research and commercialisation.
Case study analysis suggests that strengthening IPRs and introducing technology transfer frameworks based on IPRs in combination with other reforms can have a positive and sustained impact on innovation, economic development and growth, biopharmaceutical R&D and access to biotech products in emerging economies

"All of us need and rely heavily on advancements in medicine and medical treatment, all over the world," said Allen Dixon, Director of Ideas Matter. "Intellectual property obviously plays a crucial role in bringing us these vital innovations - wherever we may live."

People all over the world benefit from award-winning patented inventions

14 June 2012: The European Patent Office has announced its 2012 European Inventor Awards to the developers of patented technologies that have had benefits for people all over the world. Inventors from Germany, Denmark, France and Australia received awards this year for patented inventions in the areas of laser eye surgery, individually fitted hearing aids, portable fuel cells, Hepatitis B medicine, and wireless communication. A full listing of the winners and news from the awards ceremony in Copenhagen can be found on the European Patent Office's website.

Allen Dixon, Director of Ideas Matter, congratulated this year's winners of the European Inventor Awards: "The calibre of inventors and inventions this year is indeed impressive. Because supporting the next generation of inventors is fundamental for nurturing new ideas and innovations protected by intellectual property, awards such as these play an ever-increasing role in inspiring and recognizing new talent - vital for boosting industry and the economy. As we like to say: Ideas do matter!"

IDEAS MATTER: LAUNCH

Worldwide consortium of companies highlights the benefits of Intellectual Property

Brussels, 26 April 2012: Ideas Matter, a newly-formed group of enterprises, SMEs and trade associations, dedicated to demonstrating the benefits of intellectual property (IP) for our work and daily lives, launches today, on World IP day. In today's knowledge-based economy, companies and individuals across the globe increasingly depend on IP to help them fulfill their passions and achieve their goals. For many individuals, IP spurs creativity and rewards innovation. Companies that rely on IP are boosting today's economies by creating jobs, growing GDP, driving innovation and inspiring the next generation of entrepreneurs. For companies both large and small, IP is the bridge that connects innovation with economic growth and societal benefits.

Why do Ideas Matter?

Ideas Matter is a consortium of cross-sector enterprises, small and medium-sized businesses and trade associations that aims to expand awareness and promote the benefits of intellectual property (IP). We firmly believe that IP—and the ideas that lie underneath them—are important to the economy, important to society, important to companies both large and small. In other words, Ideas Matter.

Despite its importance, intellectual property (which includes patents, design rights, trademarks, domain names and copyrights) remains a complex and often misunderstood topic. We want to tell the personal stories of individuals and businesses that are thriving due to IP and give attention to the enormous value that IP and innovation brings to companies, economies and society.