USIJ Chairman Giancarlo Voices Concerns Over Innovation Act

Menlo Park, CA – Charles Giancarlo, well-known Internet pioneer and Chairman of The Alliance of U.S. Startups and Inventors for Jobs (USIJ), issued the following statement today regarding the introduction of the Innovation Act in the House of Representatives:

“A strong patent system provides the assurance that if the inventor takes a risk and creates a successful product or technology, they can protect that idea and be rewarded for it. This Constitutional assurance is crucial to U.S. competitiveness.

Unfortunately, some in Congress are again considering legislation, originally crafted by large companies, that would fundamentally alter this dynamic and make it dramatically harder for startups and inventors in the U.S. to continue to flourish and thrive. Legislation, such as the Innovation Act, would make valid U.S. patents much harder to enforce when held by small entities and would undercut the vibrant culture of invention and investment that has created countless new companies, driven job growth and provided the foundation of America's competitiveness.”

###

The Alliance of U.S. Startups and Inventors for Jobs (USIJ) is a group of nearly 50 Silicon Valley-based innovative startups, inventors, investors and entrepreneurs. Collectively, we have launched dozens of companies in areas ranging from biotechnology to medical devices and wireless technology. We invent real things and create real companies. We also rely on the strength of the U.S. patent system to create these companies, breakthroughs and jobs.