Ottawa, ONT. - The Canadian Intellectual Property Office (CIPO) and the Competition Bureau announced that they have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) calling for closer cooperation between the two agencies, a press release by the Office stated.


Both CIPO and the Bureau play an important role in fostering innovation and competition for the benefit of Canadian consumers and the Canadian economy. The MOU will assist the two in carrying out their important roles by promoting the benefits of, and encouraging, mutual cooperation at all levels.


Quick Facts


• Intellectual property (IP) law and competition law are complementary instruments of government policy that share a common objective — the promotion of an efficient marketplace economy.
• Communication between agency staff members will be a key element to ensure the sharing of best practices and lessons learned on dealing with marketplace counterparts in different jurisdictions, as well as on respective enforcement and IP activities, training, information technology and accommodation.


Quotes


"The Competition Bureau is committed to ensuring that Canadian consumers and businesses thrive in a competitive and innovative marketplace. The signing of this MOU will reinforce our already strong working relationship with CIPO and will allow both agencies the opportunity to collaborate on IP issues in order to better serve Canadians while delivering on our respective mandates."


- John Pecman, Commissioner of Competition

"By supporting innovation, competitiveness, increased clarity and certainty, CIPO helps enhance the commercial success of Canadian businesses. We are looking forward to strengthening our partnership with the Competition Bureau to promote an efficient marketplace economy."


- Sylvain Laporte, Commissioner of Patents, Registrar of Trade-marks and Chief Executive Officer of CIPO