International Benchmarking to Support IP Policy Decision-Making

As part of its work in the development of marketplace framework policies in Canada, Industry Canada (IC) is seeking a Canadian expert with broad experience in public policy in general and intellectual property (IP) policy, in particular.

There are frequent calls for the Government of Canada to ensure that intellectual property policy-making is evidence based i.e. informed by rigorously established objective evidence. A review of international best practices on how to develop the evidence base required to support IP policy decision-making and to determine how IP contributes to the performance of the Canadian economy would be a first step in achieving this goal.

Formulation and implementation of IP policy is a complex and multi-faceted task involving both micro (e.g. IP is often embedded in contemporary business models) and macro-economic considerations (e.g. international trade policy, foreign direct investment, innovation climate and competition policies). Globalization and international competition have resulted in governments wanting to compare their performance against international benchmarks and to use international comparisons and other indicators as inputs to policy development, to ensure policy decision-making is anchored in evidence.

Countries and businesses have recognized the growing significance of IP rights, such as patents, trademarks, copyright and industrial designs, which are increasingly regarded as highly valued corporate assets. The unprecedented pace of globalization has created an environment in which the IP regime in a given country not only serves the needs of local businesses but also caters to the needs of foreign companies.

IP rights have been granted substantial legal protection around the world, with countries recognizing the broader importance of IP rights to trade and investment reflected in their involvement with several World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) IP treaties and the World Trade Organization Agreement on Trade-related Intellectual Property Rights (WTO-TRIPS). Many of Canada’s trading partners have and continue to develop formal policies and legislative reforms, relying on an evidence base, to address pressing domestic and international issues.

However, IP policy needs to provide the right balance between: overly strong IP protections (that can increase rights holders’ market power, potentially reducing product choice and reducing the ability of competitors to innovate) and excessively weak IP protections (that can reduce innovation by failing to provide an adequate return on investment).

When considering the role of IP in the economy, attempts are often made to identify linkages between IP and economic indicators such as business innovation outcomes, research and development spending, productivity, profitability, growth, investment, etc. Also, the Government is often confronted with claims that certain aspects of the Canadian IP regime are inhibiting business performance and innovation. Alleged deficiencies in Canada’s IP frameworks are often cited as evidence of a competitive disadvantage for doing business in Canada as compared to other countries.

Therefore, there is a need to identify best practices to develop a strong evidence-base to support IP policy making in Canada.