Canada's New Intellectual Property Strategy

Consultation

Budget 2017 announced the Innovation and Skills Plan, which puts in place key programs and approaches to facilitate an innovation ecosystem in Canada, where ideas and creativity are successfully commercialized and firms grow to scale with the help of their Intellectual Property (IP) assets (patents, trademarks, copyrights, industrial designs, trade secrets, etc.).

A key item within this plan was a commitment that the Government will develop a new comprehensive IP strategy over the coming year. This strategy will ensure Canada's IP regime is modern and is intended to support commercializing Canadian innovation and creativity, foster an ecosystem that supports businesses to grow to scale, and ensure that firms have the awareness and incentive to strategically use IP to grow and compete.

Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada is seeking views on measures that could be considered and assessed. We are interested in measures that would increase commercialization outcomes for Canadian businesses and support their growth.

In particular, we are interested in obtaining views on the following areas:

1. Improving Education, Awareness and Outreach to Improve IP savviness:
   1. What are the current initiatives that work well and how could they be expanded?
   2. The Canadian Intellectual Property Office has recently launched products and services to increase IP education and awareness. In addition to what is currently offered, what types of information, programs or services would be useful to firms to increase their awareness of IP? What could be the delivery mechanisms?
2. IP Advice:
   1. How can we improve firms access to IP advice?
   2. How can firms best obtain advice on IP strategy?
3. Improving Access to IP:
   1. How can firms have better information on IP available in the marketplace (including IP being generated from research facilities)?
   2. What incentives are there to generate IP?
   3. What mechanisms for firms should be available to increase their freedom to innovate?
4. Inclusiveness
   1. What measures could be taken to increase the participation in the IP system by women, indigenous people, and other groups?

Please send all consultation submissions to Denis Martel, Director of Patent Policy; Strategy and Innovation Policy Sector; Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada at denis.martel@canada.ca. Submissions must be received by July 17, 2017 to be considered. Please note that all submissions will be posted on this website for at least three months following the end of the consultation period.

Should you have any questions about this consultation, please send them by email to julie.allain@canada.ca or by phone to 343-291-2699.