Top 5 Podcast Suggestions For IP Practitioners
It can be challenging to find extra time in the day for continuing legal education and keeping up to date in the evolving world of intellectual property law.
Podcasts have become an increasingly accessible method of staying informed. While it can seem unachievable to sit down at the end of the day and dive into an educational article or new legal decision, podcasts provide a flexible method of learning that can fit more easily into daily routines.
Below are suggestions of Canadian and international podcasts that discuss intellectual property in different and informative ways:
- IP Fridays - IP Fridays is hosted by Ken Suzan (counsel and a trademark attorney at the Minneapolis office of Barnes & Thornburg LLP) and Rolf Claessen (partner at Patent Attorneys Freischem in Cologne, Germany). It includes current topics in the field of trademarks, patents, design, and copyright. It discusses current developments in IP, records interviews with different IP practitioners and introduces listeners to helpful tools in the IP field. The focus of the podcast is global.
- Canadian IP Voices – this podcast series is produced by the Canadian Intellectual Property Office (CIPO) and hosted by Lisa Desjardins (English) and Maya Urbanowicz (French). In line with CIPO’s mandate for IP awareness and education, it discusses tips, tricks, and issues to help Canadian businesses grow and succeed, and explores the bigger picture of how trademarks, patents, copyrights, industrial designs, and trade secrets work in real life.
- Brand & New – this innovation focused podcast is produced by the International Trademark Association (INTA). It is published monthly, with each episode consisting of an open dialogue with individuals from across the world to teach listeners about different concepts of intellectual property. This podcast also includes the “Women Leaders Series”, which is a collaboration between Brand & New and the Women’s LeadershIP Initiative that celebrates the unique leadership qualities of women.
- Copy This – this monthly podcast is hosted by Kirby Ferguson and presented by Re:Create Coalition, which represents a cross-section of creators, advocates and consumers seeking to promote balanced copyright laws that foster innovation, creativity and economic growth. It takes on important questions and topics driving the copyright debate today.
- IP Goes Pop – this podcast, hosted by Volpe Koenig intellectual property attorneys Michael Snyder and Joseph Gushue, explores the interface between IP and popular culture. One recent podcast episode includes a discussion of the recent cinematic triumphs of the Barbie movie (2023), and another explores the synthesized world of "Techno-Humanism”.
These podcasts can be found on most podcast apps and websites, including Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Player FM.
While this list is non-exhaustive, these podcasts provide a helpful starting point for accessing IP knowledge and continuing education on the go.
