US Chamber of Commerce releases international IP index

Managing IP is part of Legal Benchmarking Limited, 1-2 Paris Gardens, London, SE1 8ND

Copyright © Legal Benchmarking Limited and its affiliated companies 2025

Accessibility | Terms of Use | Privacy Policy | Modern Slavery Statement

US Chamber of Commerce releases international IP index

International IP Index

Half of the 38 economies benchmarked in the US Chamber of Commerce’s annual IP index have strengthened their intellectual property systems in the US’s view

The US Chamber of Commerce this week released its 4th annual International IP Index. While the report can hardly be taken as an impartial view on the state of the global intellectual property landscape, it does give an insight into how the US views different countries and some of the changes that have been made in the past year.

The report is produced by the Chamber’s Global Intellectual Property Center (GIPC), and can be viewed here.

The least-shocking news, given the source, is that the United States ranks first in the list. Venezuela finished last out of the 38 economies studied, which account for nearly 85% of global gross domestic product (GDP).

The US believes half of the 38 economies benchmarked strengthened their IP system. This improved their overall score from last year’s Index. The index is based on 30 criteria including patent, copyright and trade mark protections, enforcement, and engagement in international treaties.

“This year’s Index illustrates that many countries embraced the upward momentum in the global intellectual property environment, and continued to take steps to improve their IP systems,” said David Hirschmann, president and CEO of GIPC. 

Some examples of the positive momentum Hirschmann identified include: Canada extending the copyright term for sound recordings to 70 years from 50; Indonesia implementing regulations for the 2014 Copyright Act that creates an online notification system for rights holders to request action against alleged infringing websites; Israel introducing patent restoration for biopharmaceuticals and regulatory data protection for submitted clinical data; and Malaysia gradually improving its IP environment over the past four years.

The report also highlighted some economies the US Chamber of Commerce believes have “ample room to improve their IP environment”:

-       The report said a number of economies, including Brazil, Russia, China, India and Indonesia, introduced or maintained policies tying market access to sharing of IP and technology.

-       It said copyright protection remains a challenge in many high income economies in Europe including Poland, Switzerland and Sweden, particularly in the absence of policies to more effectively combat online piracy.

-       Australia weakened the patentability of isolated-genetic material and biotechnology inventions when the Australian High Court reversed the Federal Court ruling in D’Arcy v Myriad Genetics.

-       The US Chamber of Commerce believes Ecuador continues to actively pursue an innovation policy that in large measure undermines or weakens the protection of IP including the active use of compulsory licences for biopharmaceutical products.

-       The US’s enforcement related to trade secrets theft and counterfeit seizures remains a weakness. 

Chamber of Commerce international IP index

more from across site and SHARED ros bottom lb

More from across our site

EasyGroup, the owner of the easyJet airline, said in a press release that UK-based first-instance judges are “less experienced”, bringing a long-running debate back to the fore
A cross-practice team from Mayer Brown, which included members of the firm’s IP practice, advised on the deal
María Cecilia Romoleroux discusses the challenges she has faced in her career in IP and how she hopes to improve things for the next generation of women
Value-added services give in-house counsel the satisfaction that they are getting more value for money, while law firms get the opportunity to win more work
A team at Boies Schiller Flexner is advising shoe company Kizik and parent company HandsFree Labs in the dispute
Nokia’s latest enforcement actions against Geely and Transsion joining Via LA’s AAC pool were also among the top talking points
Benjamin Kelly, the firm’s fifth IP partner hire in a little over one year, has experience in patent and trade secret disputes involving complex technologies
Half-year Talent Tracker data shows Pierson Ferdinand was among the most prolific hirers in the US, while in Europe, there has been a notable UPC swing
Exclusive data reveals in-house counsel want external legal advisers to build better client relationships and add value beyond routine work
Brett Sandford acted for Perplexity AI, which fended off the threat of a preliminary injunction to launch an AI-powered web browser
Gift this article