Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement - A Win for All Countries

Richmond Times-Dispatch

By: David Hirschmann

This week, the United States will have an opportunity in Virginia to advance U.S. leadership in the Asia Pacific region by hosting a critical round of negotiations with eight other countries on a 21st-century trade deal known as the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPP). Negotiating parties include Australia, Brunei Darussalam, Chile, Malaysia, New Zealand, United States, Peru, Singapore and Vietnam.

At the top of the agenda will be setting the right rules to protect and incentivize innovative and creative industries. Many of our most successful industries — from technology to pharmaceutical, entertainment to consumer products, and apparel to aerospace — rely on intellectual property (IP) to further innovation and economic development.

In Virginia alone, IP-intensive industries are responsible for more than 1.3 million jobs (42 percent all private-sector jobs) and fuel 72 percent of total exports in the state. As demonstrated by these numbers, the long-term vitality of our innovative and creative industries relies on a robust system of IP protection.

Strong IP protection is about not only our economic progress but also enhancing global public safety. It is not uncommon for enterprises based overseas to capitalize on the popularity of a product or brand and repackage their untested products as legitimate. Consumers can easily be duped by these counterfeit goods and, depending on the product, can also suffer from identity theft or physical harm. IP delivers safe products to our homes by allowing consumers to identify respected and safe brands.

Unfortunately, not all countries have the same regard for IP rights: 95 percent of consumers are beyond our borders, so selling American products abroad is a necessity. Without necessary IP protections there is no incentive for U.S. businesses to export their products to countries that fail to respect and enforce IP rights. This would be a lose-lose for everyone.

In the global economy, IP is one of our most valuable assets and a key to our competitiveness. Our innovative and creative industries contribute over 74 percent of our merchandise exports. Without proper IP enforcement, individuals are less likely to pour their time and resources into pushing the limits of human ingenuity and developing beneficial new products. This could mean a life-saving medicine going undiscovered, a great novel going unpublished or a technological advance remaining unrealized.

As the negotiating leaders have announced, the TPP will be "a model for ambition for other free-trade agreements in the future." It is therefore essential that the U.S. government not only continue to seek the robust IP standards in the agreement — looking to the recently implemented U.S.-Korea Free Trade Agreement as a model — but also reject any effort to weaken such protections. Pursuing comprehensive and commercially meaningful IP obligations will not only benefit Virginia and the United States but will also help bring investment, innovation and jobs to all TPP economies, for our collective benefit.

David Hirschmann is the president and CEO of the Global Intellectual Property Center at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. Contact him at gipc@uschamber.com.