World IP Day: Celebrating American Creativity, Innovation & Success - American Commitment

Intellectual Property is the driving force behind American innovation and success and we cannot afford to allow it to be devalued, which is why we here at American Commitment once again celebrated World Intellectual Property (IP) Day on Sunday, April 26th. From the development of life-saving cures and innovative technologies to the creation of your favorite music and movies, strong IP protections make it all possible.
The theme of this year’s World IP Day – “Get Up, Stand Up. For Music.” – is one we can certainly get behind.
In keeping with this theme, we applaud efforts by legislators to seek solutions to some of the unfair, sweetheart deals that AM/FM broadcasters have been exploiting for years. The Protecting Rights of Musicians Act (H.R. 1999), sponsored by Representatives Marsha Blackburn (TN-07), for example, would finally require terrestrial radio broadcasters to pay performers their rightly-earned royalties just like satellite radio, television broadcasters, and internet radio companies are already required to do. This bill would also prevent the FCC from, once again, meddling in areas best left to the market, by preventing them from requiring smartphone manufacturers to install FM chips in their cellular devices.
The Fair Play Fair Pay Act (H.R. 1733), sponsored by Representatives Marsha Blackburn (TN-07) and Jerrold Nadler (NY-10), similarly takes aim at the unfair practice of exempting AM/FM radio stations from paying performance royalties and would revise the royalty rate structure, established back in the 1990s, to require market-based negotiation of pricing rather than relying on government-set pricing.
While the focus of this year’s World IP Day is on the importance of encouraging creativity, protecting performers’ rights, and recognizing the significant economic contribution the music industry has made to the economy, it is also important to remember the broader impact of all IP-intensive industries.
Strong IP protections encourage innovation, boost our economy, and help to create jobs. A report released by the Global Intellectual Property Center (GIPC) earlier this year found that economies with strong IP laws on the books employ more than half their workforce in knowledge-intensive sectors (which typically pay higher wages), yield 50 percent more innovative output, and see 9-10 times more life sciences investment than economies with weak IP protections. The GIPC report also found that companies in these favorable IP environments are 40 percent more likely to invest in research and development, which means greater scientific and technological advances that save lives and allow us to compete with other countries in a global marketplace.
So, as we’ve been urged to do, let’s Get Up, Stand Up. Not just for Music, but for Every Industry that provides us with creative and innovative products, services, and solutions.