2021 part 2

48/ TRIPS@25 webinar: Leading economists to explore the economics of IP and trade

3 MAY 2021

A panel of leading international economists will explore the evolving relationship between the intellectual property (IP) system and international trade at a virtual seminar organized by the WTO for 4 May 2021. The webinar forms part of a series of events to mark the 25th anniversary of the WTO Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS).

The panellists include renowned international scholars and the chief economists from the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), the EU Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) and the US Patent and Trademark Office as well as WTO experts.

The webinar follows a seminar on “trade in knowledge” held on 20 April 2021. It delves more deeply into economic and statistical issues that have a bearing on the understanding of the contemporary policy significance of the international IP system and its interaction with international trade. This includes the interplay between IP protection and trade flows, the implications for innovation, the challenges of using IP data to map knowledge flows, and the IP dimension of global value chains. The webinar also draws on some substantive papers due to be published shortly in a forthcoming volume, “Trade in Knowledge” (CUP, 2021).

Participants will discuss the economic and statistical issues stemming from the growth of cross-border trade in knowledge associated with TRIPS implementation, including the challenges of measuring trade in IP content, and modelling the interaction of IP protection with trade and economic development.

To mark the 25th anniversary of the TRIPS Agreement in 2020, the Secretariat organized a commemorative event on 24 November 2020, followed by a series of webinars continuing into 2021.  These allowed relevant stakeholders to reflect on the past, present and future of the most comprehensive multilateral treaty on intellectual property protection and enforcement.

Source: wto.org