Brussels, 17/12/2010 (Agence Europe) - The United States and the European Union are joining forces to encourage small businesses (SMEs) to break into foreign markets and avoid risks in terms of the violation of their intellectual property rights (IPR). During the Transatlantic Economic Council in Washington on Friday 17 December, the TransAtlantic IPR Portal was launched. It offers guidance to firms in the EU and the US which wish to do business successfully in other countries.
The new website, a European Commission press release says, is “part of the mission to strengthen cooperation between the EU and the USA”. International trade in counterfeit and pirated goods is estimated to $250 billion per year.
Commission Vice-President and Industry and Entrepreneurship Commissioner Antonio Tajani said: “Improved IPR protection and enforcement will result in greater employment prospects and economic growth. Counterfeiting and piracy cause great damage to businesses, not least to small and medium size enterprises. Both the EU and US are committed to helping companies compete fairly on both sides of the Atlantic”. (Com-Gp/transl.rt)