Intellectual Property Strategy: Quotes

April 26, 2018

“This is an important step for the future of the profession and for Canadian innovation. A governance framework for patent and trademark agents will instill greater public confidence in the IP system, thus helping to foster a culture of innovation in Canada. As we all know the work of patent and trademark agents is a key element in obtaining valuable IP rights, and therefore a key component in Canadian innovation.”
– Grant Lynds, President, Intellectual Property Institute of Canada

“A new governance framework will ensure that Canada has a modern, robust, highly trained intellectual property community of professionals to support the Canadian economy. This is a key step that will solidify the excellence of the IP profession in Canada and support a strong IP system. The creation of a modern and robust governance framework places the IP profession alongside other regulated professionals who deliver high quality services under a self-regulation model that serves the public interest.”  
– Steve Garland, Chair, IPIC’s Professional Regulation Committee

 “For SunSaluter, holding a patent for my invention allows our non-profit organization to protect ourselves while we openly share the technology with others around the world who can benefit from our work. The SunSaluter technology has impacted over 15,000 people in 19 countries and counting.”
– Eden Full Goh, Founder, SunSaluter

“To take an idea from conception to building a business around it is extremely fulfilling but challenging. Owning the IP helps differentiate you from the rest as well as define and protect your idea.”
– Surbhi Guleria-Joshi, Chief Creative Director, TheAppLabb

“Intellectual property allows for a secure environment for the development and growth of innovative ideas.”
– Marie-Pier Corbeil, Co-founder, RVE

“Intellectual property protection provides both inventors and those who commercialize ideas with an avenue to benefit from their innovation efforts. Those efforts can follow a long and winding path before unique and useful solutions surface. Support for such value creation encourages us to keep imagining new futures and pursuing better outcomes in every sector.”
– Helen Kerr, Professor, Ontario College of Art and Design

"We are pleased to see new funds committed to the Copyright Board of Canada, coupled with the upcoming review, which were both well due and will hopefully lead to a reduction in delays for decisions."
– Eric Baptiste, CEO, SOCAN

 “AURP Canada is pleased to see the Federal government take on such an important initiative. The identification and coordination of Intellectual Property that exists in Canada through academic institutions and other public entities will create opportunities to private companies to create a unique competitive advantage for Canada.  The IP marketplace will also help to bolster new opportunities to accelerate the growth of companies in our economy. AURP Canada represents 28 research and technology parks and 1,400 companies across the country. We are pleased to have been an advocate of this strategy and to support its implementation.”
– Laura O’Blenis, Co-Founder and Managing Director, Association of University Research Park Canada

 “I enthusiastically welcome the IP law clinics initiative for building capacity in IP literacy and providing cost-effective legal support for innovators. Enhancing existing IP clinics and expanding their number across the country will bring multiple returns, including skills-training for the next generation of IP lawyers. In addition, the proposal to survey systemically underserved groups, including women and Indigenous entrepreneurs, is a critical first step to eliminating the structural barriers to their full participation in the IP ecosystem. “
– Myra J. Tawfik, Professor of Law, and EPICentre Professor of IP Commercialization and Strategy, University of Windsor

“The government’s IP Strategy does an exceptional job of responding to the long-standing need for better IP education, supporting innovation and combatting abusive IP practices. The changes to the Copyright Act’s Notice-and-Notice system restores its original intent and will come as a relief to thousands of Canadians who have received dubious settlement demands. By crafting rules designed to limit misuse of intellectual property, Canada is demonstrating leadership in fostering a progressive, balanced and innovative IP framework.”
– Michael Geist, Professor of Law, University of Ottawa

“The Government has crafted a very clever strategy to make Canada more competitive in the global knowledge economy. The strategy will help Canadian businesses and consumers fight back against IP misuse, such as patent trolling, copyright threats, and trademark squatting.  With the tools and advice this strategy provides for, Canada’s IP marketplace will function more efficiently and effectively.”
– Jeremy de Beer, Full Professor Centre for Law, Technology and Society, Faculty of Law, University of Ottawa

“Minister Bains has been a tireless champion of innovative Canadian companies, and I’m delighted that, under his leadership, ISED put in place this most significant pillar for an innovation strategy. Raising sophisticated domestic capacity in IP ensures Canada will improve the commercialization of our ideas globally.”
– Jim Balsillie, former co-CEO of Research in Motion and Chair of the Council of Canadian Innovators

“Minister Bains has followed through on Budget 2017’s commitment to implement practical and important reforms to the Canadian IP system. The IP Strategy will strengthen the position of Canadian innovators to develop made-in-Canada technology and marketing strategies. The investment made in the federal government’s IP Strategy in IP education and standard setting, as well as the revision of Canadian IP laws to create a level and competitive playing field for Canadian firms, delivers on the federal government’s promises to advance innovation in Canada for the benefit of Canadian firms, employees and consumers. The Pilot Patent Collective offers an innovative response to the need to keep patents available to Canadian firms. The pilot is carefully designed, is open to all and allows the market to determine what is valuable. The fact that this is a pilot will allow the community to evaluate results and, if proven successful, to expand on it in future years. I am delighted to see that the federal government is providing support to Indigenous communities to help shape Canadian and international rules around not only the protection of their culture and genetic resources, but in increasing their involvement in the innovation economy in a way that is respectful and protective of their values and culture.”
 – Dr. Richard Gold, Professor of Law, McGill University

“Standards and codes need to evolve to recognize innovative technologies like CarbonCure’s. Working with the Standards Council of Canada, we are finding solutions to help us grow our business.”
– Sean Monkman, Ph.D P.Eng, VP Technology Development, CarbonCure Technologies

“The Standards Council of Canada and standards have opened up a world of opportunity for us! We are leading and collaborating on the development of critical international standards for quantum-safe cryptography.”
– Mark Pecen, COO, ISARA Corporation

“Our work with the Standards Council of Canada and retail REIT leaders to create indoor mapping standardization solutions has built the initial stepping stones to incredible indoor experiences!”
– Hongwei Liu, Founder and CEO, Mappedin

“Standards promote innovation by making marine sensor performance specifications easier to understand and compare between manufacturers. Participating and influencing those standards helps us compete and grow our business.”
– Dustin Olender, Director of Strategic Development, AML Oceanographic

“Questor is delighted to be working with the Standards Council of Canada to find standardization solutions to help us increase sales of our solar-powered incinerators.”
– Audrey Mascarenhas, President and CEO, Questor Technology

“Participating in standards development helps us shape the global market for our services.  And standardizing HMI will help our clients save time and money!”
– Dustin Tessier, Managing Director, TESCO Group

“I am delighted that the Federal Government’s IP Strategy is tackling so many of the IP issues that have been identified as limiting the success of Canadian companies. The Pilot Patent Collective, measures addressing issues surrounding patent trolls, and supporting access to IP advisors are initiatives that will no doubt help Canadian companies become better equipped to deal with IP issues offensively, defensively and as well strategically.”
– Karima Bawa, IP Strategy Advisor and Senior Fellow, Centre for International Governance Innovation

“As a Contract Development and Manufacturing Organization (CDMO) for global pharmaceutical and biotech companies, BioVectra develops a specific IP strategy for each of the projects we work on,” said BioVectra’s President, Oliver Technow. “The nature of our goods and services, as well as the confidential nature of our partnerships, enables us to both provide and realize value from innovation, without relying on a patent intensive strategy.”
– Oliver Technow, President, BioVectra

“Growing and sustaining an innovative economy requires both a solid foundation of protection for creative ideas and savvy awareness of the rules of engagement for businesses. The Canadian Chamber of Commerce is proud to be partnering with the Canadian Intellectual Property Office and the Canadian Bar Association in helping to deliver that awareness for business.”
– Scott Smith, Director, Intellectual Property and Innovation Policy, Canadian Chamber of Commerce

“The Canada China Business Council is pleased that Canada’s IP Strategy is helping Canadian firms learn more about IP and be more aware when they enter foreign markets such as China. IP protection in China is always a concern for Canadian companies, despite a vastly improved protection environment there, and we are working with the Canadian Intellectual Property Office to help educate Canadian companies on managing their IP well.”
– Sarah Kutulakos, Executive Director, Canada China Business Council

“We’re happy to see the government’s recognition of the importance of IP in the new economy. Canada has shown a refreshing willingness to work with industry to implement tools and policy that recognize the value of IP in helping companies stay competitive and scale globally.”
– Jeremy Auger, Chief Strategy Officer, D2L

“We started to accelerate our technology patents program about five years ago in the U.S. and Canada, at around the same time we began to invest heavily in our transformation strategy. In our view, there’s nothing more valuable than the collective creativity of our employees who are hyper-focused on developing the next generation of customer experiences, and we made the decision to protect that. We also recognize the central importance of patents to the success of Canada’s technology ecosystem and will continue to support our new patents for start-ups program that provides early-stage companies with the resources they need to file their initial patents.”
– Michael Rhodes, Group Head, Innovation, Technology and Shared Services, TD Bank

“Globally, economic value has increasingly been shifting away from physical goods and towards intangible ones like brands, design, R&D, software and patents. Canada needs a strong Intellectual Property Strategy to recognize and benefit from this shift. Today’s announcement is a critical step towards equipping Canadian citizens and businesses with the right tools to compete in this increasingly innovation-driven economy.”
– Sean Mullin, Executive Director, Brookfield Institute for Innovation + Entrepreneurship

“Innovation is one of our most valuable resources, and we must protect it. CAE welcomes the Government of Canada’s new Intellectual Property Strategy. We are convinced that this strategy will give innovators and creators throughout Canada access to tools that are critical to their success. Recognizing the value of intellectual property and the importance of protecting it in a world marked by technological change is a key element of the IP Strategy, and we are proud to have contributed to it.”
– Marc Parent, President and CEO, CAE

“Thalmic is investing heavily in advanced R&D and manufacturing. We have hundreds of patents and patent applications. That intellectual property is critical to our ability to compete globally. We’re glad to see the government support efforts like ours with today’s new intellectual property strategy.” 
 – Stephen Lake, Co-founder and CEO, Thalmic Labs

“We support enhanced protection of creators’ and music publishing companies' intellectual property and fair compensation for those who help contribute to Canadian cultural content in order to remain innovative. The right IP strategy is critical to the continued economic growth of Canadian businesses. This strategy is the right one. For companies like mine, who operate in Canada and globally, or our members -- ole, Red Brick Songs, CCS Rights Management and so many more -- copyright and IP are at the heart of what we do."
 –Vince Degiorgio, President, CYMBA Music Publishing

“The Consortium for Research and Innovation in Aerospace in Québec is very pleased with this federal government initiative. The management of intellectual property places great importance on the approach leading to the commercialization of our innovations. The measures being put in place with this strategy will strengthen our ability to reach the market.”
– Denis Faubert, President and CEO, Consortium for Research and Innovation in Aerospace in Québec