FEBRUARY 2010 - SLOW ECONOMIC GROWTH WILL FUEL IP CLAIMS, PREDICTS WILKES
Birmingham based solicitors, the Wilkes Partnership, is predicting intellectual property disputes will continue to rise in 2010 as businesses fight hard to protect their rights in a recovering economy.
The expectation comes following a sizeable jump in the number of intellectual property disputes launched in the High Court and poorer than expected growth in the economy.
January’s Office of National Statistics figures showed a modest 0.1% growth in the economy for the last quarter of 2009, less than many analysts had predicted. Meanwhile, the latest figures from the High Court show a 30% rise in the number of IP claims in 2008, compared to 2007. A total of 562 cases were made in 2008 and 422 in 2007. Against this backdrop, Wilkes expects numbers will have risen in 2009 and could well continue to do so in 2010.
“In tough economic conditions, understandably businesses are more sensitive to protecting their intellectual property and data to make sure they maintain market share and profits,” says assistant solicitor at Wilkes, Jon Huskisson. “With the UK only showing modest economic growth, there is every reason to expect this will continue in the coming months and beyond, while businesses fight for healthy margins as the economy slowly recovers.”
There have been a number of high profile IP disputes in the last year, but Huskisson says large businesses are not alone in taking action in protect their intellectual property.
He also has a warning for businesses in the region considering not protecting their IP in order to save costs. Research from the Intellectual Property Office revealed IP applications from Midlands businesses in 2008 were 12% down on 2007 figures.
“A failure to protect IP in effort to save money could leave businesses exposed in the event of action from competitors. Without the correct protection, there is little to prevent a rival from stealing ideas, passing them off as their own and reaping the benefits. By not protecting its products, innovations and ideas, a business is in serious danger of risking its competitive edge. This is particularly true of small businesses whose IP could be its primary product or service. Compromising IP could actually end up costing a business money, not the other way round.” he said.
Huskisson also suggests that IP could be an additional important revenue source in the current economy.
“IP rights are a valuable business commodity and, like other forms of property, can be bought, sold or licensed. Should you own IP that is no longer required by your company, it may be of benefit to another company and because you have registered ownership of it, you may be able to use it to create an additional revenue stream.”
Huskisson’s advice for businesses unclear on their IP protection is to consult a solicitor for guidance.
