Media Contact: Barbara Fornasiero, EAFocus Communications; barbara@eafocus.com; 248.260.8466

Troy, Mich.—April 11, 2022—World Intellectual Property Day – always celebrated on April 26 – is sponsored by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) to help the public gain a better understanding of intellectual property and the impact that patents, trademarks, industrial designs, copyrights and trade secrets have in encouraging innovation and creativity throughout the world.  As this year’s theme focuses on IP and Youth: Innovating for a Better Future, Fishman Stewart managing partner Michael Stewart considers the importance of empowering the next generation of creators, inventors and entrepreneurs who will be shaping positive, sustainable change in society through their innovations.

Stewart, who was has been recognized for devoting substantial time and effort in promoting World IP Day programs throughout the United States, knows the potential is great for younger generations to be the drivers of business development, economic development and recovery, and human progress—and intellectual property is the conduit to make that happen.

“There is an extraordinary untapped supply of creativity from today’s young people. These tech savvy digital natives have the pulse of popular culture and are not afraid to use new platforms and methodologies to fuel their resourcefulness,” Stewart said. “That’s why it’s so important to help them realize the opportunity to transform their creativity into reality and teach them how intellectual property rights, when meeting established criteria, can legally protect their innovative works.”

In forming this year’s World IP Day theme, WIPO noted that:

  • There are approximately 1.8 billion young people under 24 in the world today.
  • Ninety percent of them live in developing countries.
  • The proportion of young people under 35 in the world is set to increase in coming years.
  • Millennials and Gen Z grew up connected—where the lines between the physical and digital worlds are blurred—producing very entrepreneurial, innovative and creative generations.

From the rise of artificial intelligence to the selling of digital art through non-fungible tokens, the re-recording of older songs by Taylor Swift to thwart the copyright owners of her earlier works, the moving of brands to the metaverse, and even the ability of amateur athletes to now monetize their likenesses, images, and/or names without restriction from the NCAA, creativity continues to play an ever-increasing role in all of our day-to-day lives.

“IP rights can provide researchers, inventors, businesses, designers, artists, students and other young people with the key tools necessary to advance their creations and turn them into intellectual capital—capital that can promote both social change and economic gain,” Stewart said. “For creators of all types, World IP Day is a reminder of their value in the marketplace and to society.”

About the World Intellectual Property Organization
WIPO, established in 1967, is the global forum for intellectual property (IP) services, policy, information and cooperation. It is a self-funding agency of the United Nations, with 193 member states. Its mission is to lead the development of a balanced and effective international IP system that enables innovation and creativity for the benefit of all. Learn more at https://www.wipo.int/portal/en/.

About Fishman Stewart PLLC
Celebrating more than a quarter century, Fishman Stewart helps turn client creativity into valuable intellectual capital. Since 1996, the firm has obtained tens of thousands of patents and trademark registrations and represented clients in hundreds of cases in Federal Court. As strategic advisers to CEOs and senior executives, Fishman Stewart attorneys have developed IP management strategies for U.S. and foreign-based companies, from middle market to Fortune 500, to safeguard their business assets throughout the world. To discover how Fishman Stewart leverages intellectual property to effectively protect new product lines, increase market share and head off the competition, visit fishstewip.com.

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