World Intellectual Property Day- Digital Creativity: Culture Reimagined

Every April 26 – the day on which the World Intellectual Property Office (WIPO) Convention came into force in 1970 – the World Intellectual Property Day is celebrated to promote discussions of the role of intellectual property in encouraging innovation and creativity. The WIPO’s member states designated this day with the aim of increasing the general understanding of intellectual property, including trademarks, copyrights, designs, patents, utility models etc. Each year, a special topic and focus is picked. The 2016 World IP Day Theme This year’s World Intellectual Property Day 2016 focuses on the theme: “Digital Creativity: Culture Reimagined”. Cultural works such as films, TV, music, books, art, etc., have long crossed borders. However, the Wi-Fi era is transforming how consumable culture is created, distributed and enjoyed in markets that are expanding far beyond national borders. Accessible digital technologies have swept away physical constraints, which is feeding the imagination of artists and creators in a new way as it opens for cross-cultural collaboration. The creative work of creators and artists is also easy accessible for the digital consumer, as we read, watch and listen to the works of countless creators from across the world, wherever, whenever and however we want. Reimagining culture – how we create, access and finance it- has its challenges. The challenge of a flexible and adaptive intellectual property system is to ensure that the artists and creative industries in our digital word can be properly paid for their work, so that they can and will keep creating. Therefore, WIPO has decided that we should explore some of the issues surrounding our cultural future. Both experts on creativity in the digital market and creators themselves will on this day elaborate on where they think we are heading. Events on the World IP Day 2016 The World IP Day offers a unique opportunity each year to join interesting events all over the world. For information about events near you, please check out the “World Map of IP Day events 2016” here. Also, join the World IP Day discussions on Facebook and Twitter – and use the #worldipday hashtag in your posts. For more information about the World Intellectual Property Day 2016, press here.