Famous Five Go For Growth

"Look, there's the wreck of the Dotcom!"
exclaimed Tom.  "Not much to salvage
there", quipped Roger.

Famous Five Go For Growth.  A media release from the UK's Intellectual Property Office, "Panel of experts to lead independent review into IP and growth announced", announces, er, the panel of experts leading the independent review into the intellectual property system. According to this impeccable source,

"Intellectual Property Minister Baroness Wilcox revealed the panel will consist of Tom Loosemore, Roger Burt, Professor David Gann, Professor James Boyle and Mark Schankerman. The review was launched by Prime Minister David Cameron during a speech to an audience of high tech businesses and entrepreneurs in London’s East End last month.

Baroness Wilcox said:

“This review will help the government create the right conditions for businesses to grow [just like all the previous reviews ..]. It will look at barriers to growth within the intellectual property system [if "barriers to growth" means limits on IP monopoly rights, we're in for a treat!] and the improvements that could be made to support businesses.

“It is essential the review is led by a strong team with varied backgrounds and I am delighted we have achieved that.”

The review is being chaired by the Ian Hargreaves, who is currently the chair of Digital Economy at the Cardiff School of Journalism, Media and Cultural Studies and Cardiff Business School.

The review is expected to report in April next year and will look at:
• Barriers to new internet-based business models, including the costs of obtaining permissions from existing rights-holders;
• The cost and complexity of enforcing intellectual property rights within the UK and internationally;
• The interaction between IP and Competition frameworks;
• The cost and complexity to SMEs of accessing services to help them protect and exploit their IP".

For the record, Tom Loosemore (or Tomski, as he likes to be known) "has launched innovative internet services and has held senior positions in major media organisations, including BBC, Channel 4 and Ofcom. He worked on Martha Lane Fox's recent review of Government websites".  He is also a blogger, says the Kat. Check him out here. Oh, and he tweets ...

Professor David Gann "is Head of Innovation and Entrepreneurship at Imperial College. He has worked in the private sector as well as academia with a focus on the innovation process in organisations and how it is changing". David is also co-author of Innovation: a very short introduction, so the Kat hopes this is a sign that the this review will be as short and sweet.

Roger Burt "is the IP Law Counsel for IBM in Europe. He brings a business background to the panel with particular expertise in patents".  He's our man, says tytoc collie -- huge experience of how IP works and a large dose of level-headed judgment: his criticisms of IP are fair and knowledge-based.

Professor James Boyle of Duke Law School "is an expert in intellectual property law, open source production processes and new digital business models". You can get some idea of his attitude to IP from The Public Domain: enclosing the commons of the mind.

Professor Mark Schankerman is a Professor of Economics, London School of Economics, Research Associate at the Centre for Economic Performance (LSE) and at the Centre for Economic Policy Research. His research interests include R&D, innovation, and intellectual property rights". tytoc collie has read some very interesting pieces by him and likes his approach even if he doesn't always agree with his conclusions.