NAMM SHOW TO FEATURE U.S. PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE BOOTH

CARLSBAD, Calif., December 18, 2006—NAMM, the trade association of the international music products industry, announced today that the United States Patent and Trademark Office will be staffing a booth at this year’s NAMM Show in order to educate exhibitors and attendees about intellectual property (IP) rights, and the realities of IP protection in America and abroad.

USPTO specialists will be at the Anaheim Convention Center’s main lobby to discuss trademark protection, copyrights, patents, trade secrets and the U.S. government resources available that can help NAMM Members protect their IP assets and enforce them. The booth will be open from 9:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. Jan. 18, 2007, to Jan. 20, 2007, and from 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Jan. 21, 2007.

“Protecting intellectual property assets is an essential part of every company’s business strategy, including songwriters and music product manufacturers,” said Susan Anthony, advisor at the USPTO. “Competitive advantage in the marketplace is dependent on proprietary and confidential business information and knowledge. For example, many people do not know that intellectual property protection is territorial and it must be protected on a country-by-country basis. Intellectual property protection stops at the border’s edge, just like a fence on the edge of your real property.”

According to Judy Dodds, director of membership services at NAMM, as a global leader in the music products industry NAMM supports the protection of intellectual property rights.

“These rights are an important foundation of our industry, providing creators and innovators with necessary benefits of their creativity,” Dodds said. “At NAMM, we believe that inventors, manufacturers, publishers, and other creators and owners of intellectual property are entitled to protect their rights in accordance with the law. NAMM is committed to the principle that intellectual property rights are to be respected, and we strongly urge our Members to develop protection and enforcement programs for their creative endeavors in consultation with an attorney experienced in the field of intellectual property rights.”

About NAMM
NAMM is the not-for-profit association that unifies, leads and strengthens the $17 billion international musical instruments and products industry. NAMM’s activities and programs are designed to promote music making to people of all ages. NAMM is comprised of approximately 9,000 Member companies. For more information about NAMM or the proven benefits of making music, interested parties can visit www.namm.org or call 800-767-NAMM (6266).