Ambassador Fairfax's Op-Ed on World Intellectual Property Rights Day

In today's world, technological innovation is increasingly vital not only to economic growth but also to educational, social and cultural exchange and advancement.  It is therefore vital to us all that we protect technological innovations and the people who create them.  This year's celebration of World Intellectual Property (IP) Day on April 26 emphasizes visionary innovators whose ingenuity and artistry have broken molds, opened new horizons and made a lasting impact.  To honor these innovators, whether located in California's Silicon Valley or Almaty's Institute of Nuclear Physics, we have an obligation to ensure that they can benefit from their investments of financial and human capital, which will encourage further innovation and drive our economies. 

Today in Kazakhstan, a new generation of researchers, scientists, entertainers and entrepreneurs is already playing an important role in helping to diversify this country's economy.  It is in our common economic interest to protect these industries from threats, whether those threats come in the form of counterfeit goods on the sidewalk, illegal distribution of copyrighted content on the Internet or the failure to protect industrial and technological information.  This means continuing to strengthen protections for intellectual property and its creators.

The Internet serves as a symbol of the power of technological innovation and has rapidly become an absolutely indispensable business tool in the modern world.  By providing an unprecedented platform for sharing ideas with people from around the globe, the Internet is also a powerful catalyst for scientific, educational and cultural innovation.  Without it, businesses would function less efficiently, scientists would find it harder to cooperate and all forms of communication would be much more difficult.  Without the Internet, people would be more cut off from other people, ideas and cultures.  The Internet is an incredibly powerful tool and, like any tool, can be abused.  In Kazakhstan, as in the United States and other countries around the globe, carefully crafted legal and regulatory tools are needed that preserve the vitality and independence of the Internet while safeguarding against its risks, including the risk of unfettered pirating of intellectual property such as movies and music.  Such regulations are an important component of an overall national program to promote innovation by protecting the rights of innovators. 

Cooperation on improving the protection of intellectual property is one part of the U.S. Mission in Kazakhstan's overall effort to play a constructive role in the development of Kazakhstan by advancing economic growth, technological innovation and cultural exchange.

U.S. Ambassador to Kazakhstan Kenneth Fairfax