Every 26 April we celebrate World Intellectual Property Day. This event is established by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) with the aim of raising awareness about importance of intellectual property and to celebrate creativity and innovations. This day is celebrated all over the world, and the theme of this year's campaign is "Get Up, Stand Up. For music."
In his traditional message on the occasion of World Intellectual Property Day, Francis Gurry, Director General of WIPO, stresses the importance of evaluating the work of thousands of artists, composers, songwriters, performers, producers and all others without whose hard work we wouldn’t have music.
Message from Director General Francis Gurry
Music is part of an extraordinary revolution that is taking place around us, a revolution that is fundamentally changing the way creative works are produced, distributed and consumed.
Thanks to digital technology and the Internet, we now have access to more music than ever before. The Internet has created a global marketplace and global stage for music. That is a wonderful thing for music lovers all over the world.
We need to ensure that we do not lose sight of creators and performers in the new digital economy. Is their role given sufficient value in these new systems? This is an essential question. It is essential for a vibrant culture that creators, composers, songwriters and performers are able to enjoy a decent economic existence through deriving economic value from their music. Without them, we don't have music.
Enormous artistic, personal, social and economic effort goes into the creation and the performance of music. We must find a way of ensuring its sustainability in the economy. My message for World Intellectual Property Day is – do not take music for granted; value it.
Today is a day to "get up, stand up, for music" – to ensure that our musicians get a fair deal, and that we value their creativity and their unique contribution to our lives.
