NEW YORK - The International Trademark Association (INTA) announced in a press release that it celebrates World Intellectual Property (IP) Day on April 26 by participating in a series of events around the globe to raise awareness of the importance of IP.

This year’s World IP Day theme is “Reach for Gold: IP and Sports,” celebrating  the role that IP plays in encouraging innovation and creativity in sports, while protecting the sports industry, athletes, and billions of fans around the world. 

“Sports have a unique ability to bring people together across the globe, to support their favorite teams, and to celebrate the achievements of their favorite athletes. INTA welcomes the opportunity to join the intellectual property community in recognizing the important role of IP in sports and in society,” said INTA President-Elect Ayala Deutsch, Executive Vice President and Deputy General Counsel at NBA Properties, Inc., New York.

“Trademarks help sports organizations create, build, and protect some of the world’s most iconic and well-loved brands, and provide fans with a means to support the teams and athletes they admire,” she said. “The sports industry also is a major driver of economic development, including investment in public infrastructure projects and employment supporting millions of workers—much of which is generated through IP-intensive activities.”

INTA’s presence at World IP Day events will span four continents, with representatives from the Association attending functions in Brazil, Belgium, and Myanmar on April 26, and in Washington, D.C., on April 29.

In Brazil, INTA will attend an event at the Rio de Janeiro regional office of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), which will feature roundtable discussions about the importance of IP strategies in sports development, and sports as a tool for social development. 

In Belgium, INTA will attend a panel on the role of IP as an incentive for sports-related advancements in Brussels organized by AmCham EU, the Federation of the European Sporting Goods Industry, and the U.S. Mission to the European Union. And in Myanmar, at an event organized by the Myanmar Intellectual Property Proprietors' Association in Yangon, INTA will participate in a panel on the relationship between Myanmar’s traditional sports and trademark law.

In Washington D.C.,  INTA is the co-organizer of an event on Capitol Hill on April 29, coordinated by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) and sponsored by Rep. Hank Johnson (D-GA), Chairman, House Judiciary Subcommittee on Courts, Intellectual Property and the Internet. Several speakers will discuss how sports innovate and “unite us all in pushing the boundaries of human achievement.” 

Dr. Phil Wagner, Founder and CEO of Sparta Science, Menlo Park, California, will be the keynote speaker and will discuss the company’s development of a technology that helps predict injury risks for athletes. Other speakers include Laura Peter, Deputy Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Deputy Director of the USPTO, and John Sandage, Deputy Director General, Patents and Technology Sector, WIPO.