Hamburg, Germany
January 20, 2012

Miami Beach, FL, April 23-27, 2012 - CIOPORA is going to the other side of the big pond for its Annual General Meeting 2012. American breeders are heartily welcome to join in on
a range of events in order to discuss the needs of the industry in the field of Intellectual Property Protection.

With the new America Invents Act signed into power in September 2011, there could be no better time for CIOPORA to have its Annual General Meeting in the United States. The upcoming CIOPORA AGM Week 2012 will provide all interested parties with a perfect opportunity to discuss the most recent developments in IP Protection for plant innovations both in USA and Europe, to pinpoint the existing problems and to debate on effective solutions. The focus of the upcoming event will be on the IP Protection of plant varieties and its challenges in North and South America.

The program of the AGM week 2012 is specifically developed in order to achieve an effective knowledge transfer for the target groups. Two Intellectual Property Seminars, which will take place on Monday, April 23 at the meeting spaces of the Palms Hotel in Miami Beach, cover the topics of IP protection for plant innovation in Europe and the U.S. The agenda of the seminar on EU includes presentations on PBR in Europe, Patents for plant-related innovations and Trademarks. The U.S. Seminar will focus on basic information about Plant Patents, Patent litigation, Trademarks, and forms of protection for plant varieties in the USA.

While April 24 is reserved for the Annual General Meeting of CIOPORA, the educational part of the week will be resumed on Wednesday, April 25, at the International Intellectual Property Conference. In the course of the full-day event, which will take place at the Royal Palm ball room of the Palms Hotel, CIOPORA members and guests will be informed about the protection of plant innovations in USA and the latest PVR developments in Americas. Mr. Peter Button, the Vice-Secretary General of UPOV, Mr. Augusto Solano, President of ASOCOFLORES, Mr. Gino A. Descalzi, President of EXPOFLORES, as well as a representative of the USPTO are among the invited speakers.

The CIOPORA AGM Week in Miami will be rounded up by the business excursions and networking events, presenting the participants with a great opportunity to engage in the concluding discussions and to establish new business contacts in an informal atmosphere.

CIOPORA is the International Association of Breeders of Vegetatively Reproduced Ornamental and Fruit Varieties. Breeders of such crops hold ca. 2/3 of all PVR titles in the world. Since 50 years CIOPORA represents them in all matters of Intellectual Property Protection.

Website: http://www.ciopora.org

Published: January 26, 2012