Helping innovators protect ideas

By Your Southwest Media Group

Alberta has launched a new Intellectual Property Office to help researchers, entrepreneurs and innovators protect and commercialize ideas developed in the province.

The office will operate under Alberta Innovates and is intended to help turn Alberta-made innovations into commercial products, new companies, jobs and economic growth.

Technology and Innovation Minister Nate Glubish said Alberta has strong researchers and entrepreneurs, but too often the intellectual property they create ends up owned outside the province.

“The Alberta IP Office will help ensure that when great ideas are developed here, the IP is created, protected and commercialized here,” Glubish said.

Alberta Innovates CEO Michael Mahon said the office is part of the province’s effort to make Alberta a stronger place to build and scale companies based on intellectual property.

The office will work with entrepreneurs, researchers, post-secondary institutions, technology transfer offices and public funding programs. Its work will include IP strategy, intelligence, legal supports, market analysis and exploring data and patent pooling.

The province has allocated $8 million to the office.

According to the province, IP-intensive industries generate 41 per cent of U.S. GDP and 44 per cent of U.S. jobs. From 2017 to 2019, only 1.1 per cent of Canadian businesses filed patents, compared to an Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development average of 5.9 per cent in 2016.

More than 40 per cent of Canadian inventions are owned by foreign firms, with limited commercialization activity taking place in Canada.