The United Kingdom Intellectual Property Office, the Office for Harmonization in the Internal Market (OHIM) and the European Commission, jointly hosted a unique IP Enforcement Summit in London, from 11 to 12 June.

The Summit brought together European and international IP institutions, enforcement authorities, multinational business leaders and governments to consider how best to respond to the growing problem of counterfeiting and piracy.

The debate focused on the online environment, customs enforcement in Europe and at external borders, and the coordination of tools and techniques to tackle IP infringements. Enforcement experts discussed how more effective international cooperation and collaboration could be developed to improve both strategic and operational responses to what is now a global economic and criminal issue.

The conference programme reflected the global nature of the IP enforcement effort. Vince Cable, UK Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, Heinz Zourek, Director General of the European Commission, Kunio Mikuriya, Secretary General of the World Customs Organization, former US Senator Chris Dodd, Chair and CEO of the Motion Picture Association, Francis Gurry, Director General of the World Intellectual Property Organization, Paul Polman, CEO of Unilever, Rob Wainwright Director of Europol, as well as Matthew Barzun, the US Ambassador to the UK, were only some of the attendees.

UK Intellectual Property Minister, Lord Younger, said:

"Protecting IP rights is vital to supporting economic growth. The rapidly evolving digital world presents a range of challenges for Intellectual Property protection in the future, and partnerships are essential if we are to address the challenges of today and tomorrow. I look forward to welcoming colleagues from across the world to London to discuss how we can maximise the benefits of an effective enforcement regime."

Antonio Campinos, OHIM President, stated:

"The recent joint study published by OHIM in collaboration with EPO acknowledged that more than 77 million jobs and over 4.7 trillion euros are generated by industries using IPR intensively. Innovators and creators need reliable protection of their intellectual assets, but they also need effective enforcement. This cannot be achieved simply by passing the responsibility on to police and customs authorities. Public and private cooperation is essential if we want to ensure that IP is protected to safeguard jobs, growth and counter the social and economic damage thatIP infringements cause."