Written By: Lawrence A. Maxham
As recently reported by the US Secretary of Commerce, industries that make significant use of intellectual property (IP) account for over 41% of the US gross domestic product and employ one-third of the total US workforce.
The founders of the US, well over 200 years ago, could have had no idea that by accounting for IP in the US Constitution, by 2019 IP would account for $7.8 trillion in gross domestic product. There are 127 IP-intensive industries in sectors such as manufacturing, wholesale and retail trade, and professional, technical, management and administrative services. 47.2 million jobs are directly employed in these industries — 33% of total US employment. Jobs in other industries that depend, at least partially, on final sales in IP-intensive industries, account for another 11% of US employment, for a total of 44% of US employment.
Not only do patents, trademarks, and copyrights contribute jobs, the average earnings of those workers in IP-intensive industries are 60% higher than workers in other industries. They also receive greater value of employer sponsored benefits than non-IP workers.
All of this is just further proof that the founding fathers were visionaries. That they had the foresight to include fundamental protections for IP rights continue to contribute to America’s innovation and success as shown in this latest report. IP is in the Constitution to protect your rights so you can add to the fabric of America with your creative and inventive ideas and business ventures, and we look forward to protecting your IP ideas to create valuable assets for you.
Please let us know if you have any questions about IP matters. You can contact us via email or you can call us at (760)-975-3843. We are available for virtual and in-person meetings.