On the occasion of World Intellectual Property (IP) Day, 26 April 2021, AmCham attended two events, one organized by the US Chamber of Commerce, and the other by AmCham EU who both hosted events exploring the topic of what SMEs need to succeed.
As SME’s comprise the largest portion of the global economy, it is of vital importance to their success that their IP rights are in-tact and enforced. Both events emphasized the need for IP right protection and just how much they impact businesses, especially entrepreneurs.
With the rise of copyright infringement and the lengthy patent procedures, SME owners and CEO’s described their struggles and the increasing need of IP Rights knowledge among new business owners, entrepreneurs and inventors.
The importance of intellectual property rights (IPR) for the EU’s economy is crucial, as the contributions of IPR-intensive industries to the total economic activity, weighs in at 45% and most susceptible to IP theft are the SMEs. Therefore, the European Commission’s legislative agenda which aims to support SMEs through the IP Action Plan and the Next Generation EU recovery package is of vital importance to the future of SMEs.
