World IP Day on April 26 is a time for us to reflect on the importance of intellectual property (IP) as a cornerstone of biopharmaceutical innovation. 

IP has been and remains a critical enabler of UCB’s ambition to transform the lives of people living with severe diseases. It is key to our ability to deliver on the fundamental commitment we made to enabling people living with severe diseases, their caregivers, and their families to live their best lives. Without IP, UCB would be unable to continuously innovate and bring differentiated solutions with unique outcomes to help specific patients achieve their life goals.  

And that is precisely why UCB is proud to be among a group of around 30 leading innovative biopharmaceutical companies that have come together to launch a series of IP Principles for Advancing Cures and Therapies – or the IP PACT for short. 

The IP PACT is a groundbreaking declaration affirming our companies’ strong commitment to putting patients at the heart of our approach to IP. For the first time, companies like ours come together to explain and openly set forth the principles that outline how we use the IP system. 

The first principle captures the essence and the commitment behind all of them: our core purpose of bringing value to patients and society must guide our approach to IP. 

Being part of the IP PACT is yet another embodiment of our commitment to putting patients at the heart of everything we do. It further reflects our commitment to both current and future generations. 

To ensure we achieve that goal, sustainability is an imperative, which applies to our IP Practice in the same way it applies to every other aspect of our business. This means that in any decision we make, we ask ourselves how we can make the biggest difference for our current patients while preserving our ability to invest and take risks in the long term to meet the needs of future generations. 

I ask you to join us in celebrating #WorldIPDay today. Let’s recognize the critical role IP plays in medical progress and allowing patients to live their best lives.