Wednesday 4 July saw the third annual British IP Day – a celebration of the huge contribution that intellectual property makes to the UK, culturally and economically.

To mark the day, the latest Online Copyright Infringement (OCI) tracker was launched by the IPO.

The Alliance for IP coordinated a series of events, ​which saw creators and IP-rich business owners from across diverse industries descend on Parliament. There, designers, authors, brand owners, artists, publishers, photographers and others heard from IP minister Sam Gyimah MP before meeting their local MPs to tell the story of how crucial intellectual property is to their work and success.

In the evening at the Alliance for IP’s Summer Reception, leading stakeholders from industry, consumer groups and law enforcement gathered on the Terrace Pavilion in the House of Commons, along with parliamentarians from across the political spectrum. Shadow Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, Rebecca Long Bailey MP,  spoke passionately about the importance of protecting IP as an essential element of the innovation and creativity that is such a key part of the British economy. 

Through the Real Deal programme, hundreds of markets are now working with their local trading standards services to ensure that IP is respected and protected across markets and car boot fairs across the country. And the Real Deal partnership model is now also being extended to the online and social media space. By facilitating safe, fair, fake-free marketplaces, the Real Deal and its many supporting organisations are delighted to play a part in British IP Day, and every day, helping to spread the Alliance’s message of ‘innovation and growth through IP’.