Electronic Imaging the Visual Arts EVA 2015 Florence

Intangible rights protect the products of human intelligence, such as copyrightable works, patented inventions, trademarks and trade secrets. The protection and the enforcement of IPR are crucial for the development of the industrial sector and its ability to compete in a global economy -­‐ both on a national and international level. Counterfeiting should be considered a virus which insinuates itself into the healthy economy, damaging entrepreneurs, legal employment and fostering criminality. In recent years, concerns for public health and safety have increased due to the replication of particular kinds of goods, such as medicines, foods, beverages, toys and spare parts for automobiles and aircrafts. Counterfeiting should be viewed neither from a political right nor from a political left but from above and below: “below” means admitting that counterfeiting is part of an insalubrious submerged economy; “above” signifies that we need a strategic vision to combat it. The first priority in this battle is growing awareness of the phenomena, particularly among consumers, with a strong focus on young people. Our methods of communication need to change. We must adopt modern technology, using Social networks, such as Twitter or Facebook. Enforcement is then necessary: even if Italian law is fairly adequate, this remains the greatest issue: in Italy, specialization in Intellectual Property Rights can be found in civil court judges but is almost totally absent among criminal judges. Despite the creation of Italian Enterprise Courts into which the IP Civil Courts have been absorbed, the challenge remains the one of preserving the IP specialization of civil judges and of creating that of criminal Judges. The next goal is coordination: setting up a series of committees to roll–out anti-­‐counterfeiting initiatives. We must stop cultivating “small gardens” of skills to protect IP, starting to carry out transversal investigation. Growth of awareness among entrepreneurs is also crucial: the protection and the enforcement of IPR must be recognized as necessary prerequisites for the development of Italian industry. Even in SMES there is a need for an IP manager, which should cover a strategic position. Internet and the web will certainly open new avenues for international trade, but at the same time the globalization will offer new possibilities to the criminals: the future battle against counterfeiting will definitely be conducted on the web, since it is a powerful tool to “internationalize” the counterfeiting of brands and products. Last but not least, “made in Italy" and "Italian Sounding" must be protected from foreign usurpation. EXPO 2015, that in the next six months is expected to bring 20 million visitors to our Country, is an exceptional vehicle for the promotion of Made in Italy and of our nation as a whole in an international environment. Made in Italy is our pride but even more, it is the driver of Italian development. The title of Expo 2015, “feeding the planet, energy for life”, introduces many themes, all of them being fundamentally based on ethics: in fact, it’s not ethical to infringe agro-­‐alimentary rights, especially the famous “Italian Sounding” in which unauthorized product are sold under an Italian name. Lack of respect for the Country of origin costs Italy 60 billion euro per year in lost turnover, while the damage to the Italian Agro-­‐ 24 Vito Cappellini (edited by), Electronic Imaging & the Visual Arts. Eva 2015 Florence ISBN 978-88-6655-758-6 (print) ISBN 978-88-6655-759-3 (online) © 2015 Firenze University Press alimentary sector accounts for 6 million euro per hour. EXPO 2015 gives Milano a unique opportunity to re-­‐launch Italy as a protagonist in the promotion of fair and respectful competition regulation, which must recognize and protect diverse geographical-­‐cultural origins worldwide. To sum up: different instruments for each sector are needed, but always under the wise lead of a unique large institutional orchestra.