Exclusive: AT&T chief reveals plans for new Global IP Alliance

Managing IP is part of Legal Benchmarking Limited, 4 Bouverie Street, London, EC4Y 8AX

Copyright © Legal Benchmarking Limited and its affiliated companies 2025

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

Exclusive: AT&T chief reveals plans for new Global IP Alliance

adobestock-303377125-1.jpeg

IP CEO Scott Frank says he wants to have a global alliance based on the same model as the US IP Alliance up and running by autumn 2022

First Georgia, then the US and now the world – that should be Scott Frank’s new maxim.

The CEO of intellectual property at AT&T, who spearheaded the Georgia IP Alliance (GIPA) in his home state in 2018 and then the US IP Alliance (USIPA) in 2020, told Managing IP this week that he plans to set up a Global IP Alliance with the help of WIPO by autumn 2022.

Frank says he will work closely with Lisa Jorgenson, the deputy director general for patents and technology at WIPO, who recently joined the USIPA’s board, to set up the new organisation.

“We’ve just formed a new committee called the global IP committee, and the goal now is to launch the Global IP Alliance with the aim of helping as many people as possible to improve their lives – and as we all know, IP plays a big part in improving lives,” he says.

“Everyone around the globe should be aware of IP – it is so fundamental to our existence that every single human being should understand what it means to them.”

He adds that GIPA and the USIPA, which the new worldwide organisation will be based on, have been incredibly successful and it is important to build on that momentum now.

The Global IP Alliance, like GIPA and the USIPA, will have a three-pronged mandate to drive awareness and education, enable ecosystem collaboration, and facilitate diversity and inclusion.

Frank says the new alliance’s first job will be to try to get every country involved and build a representative board.

For more information on the Global IP Alliance, listen to Managing IP’s corner office podcast with Frank, due to be published next week.

more from across site and SHARED ros bottom lb

More from across our site

The UK-India trade deal doesn’t mention legal services, showing India has again failed to agree on a move that could help foreign firms and local practitioners
Eva-Maria Strobel reveals some of the firm’s IP achievements and its approach to client relationships
Lateral hires at Thompson Hine and Pierson Ferdinand said they were inspired by fresh business opportunities and innovative strategies at their new firms
The launch of a new IP insurance product and INTA hiring a former USPTO commissioner were also among the top talking points this week
The firm explains how it secured a $170.6 million verdict against the government in a patent dispute surrounding airport technology, and why the case led to interest from other inventors
Developments of note included the court partially allowing a claim concerning confidentiality clubs and a decision involving technology used in football matches
The firm said adding capability in the French capital completes its coverage of all major patent litigation jurisdictions as it strives for UPC excellence
Marc Fenster explains how keeping the jury focused on the most relevant facts helped secure a $279m win for his client against Samsung
Clients are divided on what externally funded IP firms bring to the table, so those firms must prove why the benefits outweigh the downsides
Rahul Bhartiya, AI coordinator at the EUIPO, discusses the office’s strategy, collaboration with other IP offices, and getting rid of routine tasks
Gift this article