U.S. Government to Assist Minnesota Small Businesses in Combating Intellectual Property Theft

Minneapolis Event Part of National Crackdown on Counterfeiting, Piracy

Washington, D.C. - U.S. Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property Jon Dudas will join hundreds of Minnesota small-business men and women during a conference on "Intellectual Property in the Global Marketplace," September 11 and 12, 2006, in Minneapolis, Minn. The event is part of the federal Strategy Targeting Organized Piracy (STOP), a major U.S. government effort led by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) to protect American businesses from falling victim to intellectual property theft, both at home and abroad.

During the two-day seminar, patent, trademark and copyright experts from the USPTO will provide small- and medium-sized businesses, entrepreneurs and independent inventors with useful tips on protecting and enforcing their intellectual property rights in the United States and around the world.

WHO

Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Deputy Director of the United States Patent and Trademark Office Jon Dudas

Minnesota small- and medium-size business owners, entrepreneurs and independent inventors

WHAT

"Intellectual Property in the Global Marketplace" seminar.

Remarks on the global intellectual property marketplace and how small businesses, including those in Minnesota, are increasingly at risk of intellectual property theft.

WHEN

September 12, 2006
Under Secretary Dudas will speak at 10 a.m.

WHERE

Millennium Hotel Minneapolis
1313 Nicollet Mall
Minneapolis, MN

Information about USPTO efforts to educate small businesses about intellectual property theft can be found at www.stopfakes.gov/smallbusiness.

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