World IP Day 2021: Taking your Ideas to Market Legally

WIPO's member states declared April 26 as World Intellectual Property Day in 2000, with the aim of growing public awareness of the intellectual property. This year's theme; Taking your Ideas to Market, will also touch upon the pragmatic intellectual property difficulties and obstacles that arise along their way, and on the best ways to mitigate them.

Since then, the annual celebration of World IP Day has offered unique opportunities for the global innovation community to join forces and begin a conversation on how Intellectual Property contributes to the development of modern-day innovation. It conclusively and continually fosters disruptive development that helps form and shapes our global commercial community.

SME’s: Not As Small As We Think

Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are in reality and statistically, the cornerstone of the world economy. They employ about 90% of our worlds’ workforce and are critical contributors to innovative growth and global progress. 

As we observe an upheaval of economic recovery from COVID-19's disruption, World IP Day 2021 puts the spotlight on how the existence and role of SMEs can and should leverage their intellectual property assets, to ensure that they develop faster, more sustainably, and evolve into potentially resilient industries.

World Intellectual Property 2021 Day initiative explores critical intellectual property issues that arise while entrepreneurs introduce their innovations.

The First Encounter: IP and SMEs

Unfortunately, most SMEs encounter the notion of intellectual property for the first time due to a conflict occurring, and most often when they discover that a market rival has copied their concept. Leaving them empty-handed and defenseless. 

Mostly, it would be only during this stage that the SME acknowledges that they should have preserved their Intellectual Property sooner. Similarly, SMEs often run into difficulties when they unknowingly operate using Intellectual Property that has already been legally claimed or registered by another person or entity.

The First Encounter: IP and SMEs

Unfortunately, most SMEs encounter the notion of intellectual property for the first time due to a conflict occurring, and most often when they discover that a market rival has copied their concept. Leaving them empty-handed and defenseless. 

Mostly, it would be only during this stage that the SME acknowledges that they should have preserved their Intellectual Property sooner. 

Similarly, SMEs often run into difficulties when they unknowingly operate using Intellectual Property that has already been legally claimed or registered by another person or entity.

Turning A Blind Eye: Why Do SMEs Deliberately Ignore IP?

For several SMEs, especially start-ups, cost minimization is a stipulated concern. Intellectual property is often overlooked as a crucial consideration and is often considered unnecessary and unjustifiably expensive. Despite proof and maybe advice from peers, businesses that unsuccessfully leverage their IP have a weaker chance of survival in todays’ neck-to-neck commercial ecosystem.

Lend A Helping Hand: Enhancing Access to IP Education

World Intellectual Property Day 2021 highlights the importance of both WIPO’s and all global IP firms' role in creating a culture that is supportive and conducive to SMEs, as their mere existence stimulates progress and development, igniting economic recovery, and generating more job opportunities. 

As a regional pioneer in IP, here Abou Naja Intellectual Property’s take on playing an active role in lending a helping hand, to global and regional SMEs, before they rule off IP as ‘unnecessary’ or ‘too expensive:

• Aiding entrepreneurs in understanding Intellectual Property and its various types. We want to talk to SMEs through which type of protection applies to their unique business concept.
• SMEs will be able to identify possible risks and spot P-related revenue opportunities. And we one call away. And our expertise comes at no cost.
• We want to guide SMEs on strategising and mitigating critically expensive and time-consuming complications from their rivals
• We will guide SMEs on cultivating commercial value creation;
• Through evidence, SMEs will be educated to factually acknowledge that IP is a dynamic solution that will indeed support their long-term survival
• We want to help SMEs gauge their ideas and consequently generate economic impact by progressing market objectives and in just about any nation. 

To Conclude: We Want To Be A Part Of It All 

To us, intellectual property is and always will be a very enigmatic legal term that can be fully grasped and practiced by those who are specialised and those who know nothing about it. Such directions are intended to assist small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs) in particular in understanding that it is critical to listen attentively to intellectual property (IP) and the opportunities associated with its use. 

We feel privileged to be in a field that secures their intellectual property rights, an SME’s commercial objective will be steadily transformed into a commercial opportunity that increases value, creates industrial revolution, and enriches a close-knit economy by providing their customers a legally secured innovation, pertaining to their goods and services. 

World IP Day’s core is the reason why firms like us exist. And this core is entitled in our ethos as an IP pioneer, and we are here for you regardless of what day of the year it is. 

Need a lending hand in bringing your idea to market? Drop us a line at connect@abounaja.com and we will make sure you enter the commercial ecosystem, Legally And Forcefully.