World Intellectual Property Day – 26 April

17 APRIL 2001
For Immediate Release MEDIA RELEASE

World Intellectual Property Day – 26 April

The spirit of Kiwi Ingenuity will be championed on 26 April, as the Intellectual Property Office celebrates the first World Intellectual Property Day.

World Intellectual Property Day pays tribute to society’s inventors, both past and present, whose creativity and innovation have led us from the inkwell to the Internet and from railways to rockets.

The global theme for the day is “Creating the Future Today”.

To mark the occasion, and raise awareness of New Zealand’s innovators, the Intellectual Property Office will hold a public information display in Lower Hutt’s Westfield shopping plaza on 26 April.

New Zealand has had more than its fair share of important innovations, ranging from the electric fence to Hamilton Jet boats to the Britton motorcycle. The Intellectual Property Office of New Zealand is the government agency responsible for protecting these innovations through the registration of patent, trade mark and design rights.

The event is being organised worldwide by WIPO, the World Intellectual Property Organisation. WIPO is responsible for co-ordinating intellectual property protection amongst its 177 member states. WIPO was established on 26 April 1970, the reasoning behind the choice of date.

A worldwide essay competition is also being run by WIPO to mark the occasion. The competition is open to university students worldwide, and the winner will receive 1000 Swiss francs (approximately $NZ1300). Essays, based on the question “What does intellectual property mean to you in your daily life?” are due by 1 December 2001. More information is available in the WIPO website, listed below.

For further information contact Tricia Jennings, IPONZ, tel. (04) 560-1600

Intellectual Property Office of New Zealand: www.iponz.govt.nz
World Intellectual Property Organisation: www.wipo.org

ENDS

© Scoop Media