Meet our most diverse MIP 50 ever

As regular readers will know, our MIP 50 list includes business leaders, regulators, judges and others who are influencing IP strategies, businesses and policy, but does not include lawyers in private practice.

You can read the full list of people included this year here, along with links to interviews and other material related to them (note you will need to log in or take out a free trial to access the list).

One of the striking features of this year’s list is that 17 of the MIP 50 are women. That is admittedly fewer than half, but it’s more than a third, and I believe it is the most women ever included. We fully expect that number to increase in future lists, judging by the warm response to our Women in IP Network, and the number of women in prominent positions in IP today, including the head of the USPTO (pictured below, and interviewed last month by Peter Leung), the chief judge at the Federal Circuit and the EU Commissioner with responsibility for patents and trade marks.

Geographically, this year’s list is also varied. While just over half of those included are from North America and Europe, and there is the usual strong representation from China, India and Australia, there are also important figures from Mexico, Mozambique and Myanmar, among other emerging markets.

As you would expect, there are familiar names from WIPO, the EPO and OHIM and from influential courts. But there are also representatives of the pharmaceutical, telecoms and computer industries, two MEPs, some people who are known for promoting IP rights, others who are known for opposing them, and some who are best known for their role in creating IP rather than talking about it. The latter category includes two pop stars.

The MIP 50 list has been compiled by our editorial team both to celebrate the achievements of the individuals included and to inform readers about those achievements. But we see it as the start of a debate rather than the final word and in that spirit we welcome your comments, including your views on those people included, and suggestions for figures you think have been overlooked.

So please do submit comments below, or on LinkedIn or Twitter using the hashtag #MIP50. We look forward to hearing what you have to say.

The MIP 50 list is also published in full in our July/August issue. Many subscribers will already have received their paper copies but you can also read it in full online. Other features in this issue include:

An interview with Michelle Lee, in which she talks about her vision for the USPTO and international cooperation

Judge Mayer’s quest for Section 101 reform – US case law since Alice

South Africa considers pharma patent changes – the Draft IP Policy explained

A peek into the health tech boom – the IP and legal issues that companies need to know

When trade mark use is not infringement – a survey of seven countries

UPC concerns for telecoms and IT companies – the latest article in our series on the UPC

The history and future of induced infringement liability - Commil v Cisco analysed

A new approach to combating counterfeits in Turkey (the world’s second largest counterfeit economy)

Protecting trade secrets in the global age: an interview with Hsu Wei-Fu of MediaTek (pictured)

IP Clinic: three contributions to the question “My company is interested in open innovation, but how can we protect our rights?”

Plus there is our selection of sponsored country updates, and our regular light-hearted take on the IP world, Utynam’s Heirs, which this month reports from our recent IP in Asia forums.

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