World Intellectual Property Organization

Economic development throughout the world is linked increasingly with the expansion and protection of intellectual property rights (IPR). Weak or inconsistent patent, trademark and copyright laws discourage economic growth and stifle entrepreneurship in a number of ways. Investors will not risk capital on new inventions when competitors are free to copy or use the technology without paying royalties. Companies will not build factories or train workers in countries that don’t honor their patent rights. Trademark owners avoid markets where the value of their brands is diluted by cheap imitations. Pirated copies of foreign software, films and music undermine the copyrights of local software, publishing and entertainment industries. For thirty years, the World Intellectual Property Organization, or WIPO (pronounced W-I-P-O), has worked to expand and strengthen intellectual property rights worldwide. The WIPO Web site (http://www.wipo.int) supports this mission with a rich and well-organized collection of international intellectual property information and databases.