Innovation Asset Blog

IPO chief calls for government investment in intellectual property

Doug Norman, president of the Intellectual Property Owners Association, recently called for the government to invest greater resources in intellectual property.

Speaking to members of Congress at the first hearing of the new House Judiciary Subcommittee on Intellectual Property, Competition and the Internet, Norman called on the Congress to provide additional funding to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

Norman told the subcommittee members the IPO believes "patent rights granted by the PTO provide critically important incentives for inventors and businesses to invent, to invest in research and development and to commercialize technology."

According to Norman, "the literature is filled with evidence that inventions are a major contributor to economic growth."

Norman urged the members of Congress to include the PTO-related provisions in any funding legislation passed before March 4, the deadline for Congress to resolve government funding issues for fiscal 2011.

Norman's suggestions come at a time when intellectual property is featuring prominently in U.S. political discourse. According to a recent IPWatchdog report, president Barack Obama devoted nearly 20 percent of his recent State of the Union Address to technology, innovation and inventors.

Peter Ackerman

Peter Ackerman

Founder & CEO, Innovation Asset Group, Inc.