Physical Security

Piracy battle

by msecadm4921

The International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) was among European and national business associations commending the European Union (EU) and Member States as they moved to join their global allies in the battle against counterfeiting and piracy.

Representatives from the EU and 22 Member States today signed the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA), in Tokyo, Japan, sending a worldwide signal that the EU aims to increase protection of its intellectual capital and support innovation. The European Parliament must now approve the agreement. The business community urges the Parliament to quickly complete the process and give its consent to the treaty.

Trading partners Australia, Canada, Japan, Republic of Korea, Morocco, New Zealand, Singapore, and the United States all signed the agreement last October. Of the original negotiating countries, only Mexico and Switzerland have yet to sign the treaty.

European Parliament President Martin Schulz received a brief document endorsed by 28 European organizations representing Europe’s business and IP community. The document, called “ACTA – Why You Should Support It”, outlines the strengths of the treaty and its benefits for Europe. It clarifies the policy intent of ACTA and explains how ACTA will help to better protect European creators and innovators, and boost European competitiveness and growth. The document urges the European Parliament to rapidly give its consent to the agreement.

“These business organizations represent businesses of all sizes, from every corner of Europe and across virtually every product sector,” said Marie Pattullo, speaking on behalf of AIM, one of the leading European business organizations. “Businesses are concerned about IP theft and their ability to innovate, compete and deliver economic growth in the face of counterfeiting and piracy.”

“Counterfeiting and piracy – both physical and online – harm the world economy, endanger public health and safety and undermine legitimate businesses,” said Alan C. Drewsen, Executive Director of the International Trademark Association (INTA). “Addressing these problems requires better international resolve and cooperation, which ACTA will supply.”

“ACTA strengthens Europe’s ability to fight against fake and pirated goods and the organized criminals that profit from their sale,” Jeffrey Hardy, Director of ICC’s BASCAP initiative said. “The EU’s best negotiators have delivered a solid treaty that’s good for Europe, good for innovation and good for jobs.” According to an Opinion of the Legal Service of the European Parliament in December 2011, ACTA:

1. Is a balanced agreement that allows its Parties to implement ACTA provisions in a fair manner;
2. Is compatible with existing EU law and is in line with relevant international law, in particular with the WTO’s Agreement on Trade-related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS); and
3. Provides for the respect of fundamental rights.

“The benefits of ACTA are enormous,” said Mr Drewsen. “ACTA will protect European creators and innovators, generate and preserve jobs, stimulate economic competitiveness and growth, and foster international trade.”

About counterfeiting and piracy in the EU

Counterfeiting and piracy continue to be major problems in Europe. The EU’s annual report on customs enforcement of intellectual property rights (IPR) last year showed that border cases involving IPR infringements had almost doubled. In his report, Algirdas Semeta, EU Commissioner for Taxation and Customs Union, said the battle is far from over.
On the digital piracy side, a recent study by ICC – Building a Digital Economy: The Importance of Saving Jobs in the EU’s Creative Industries – showed that EU losses from piracy could result in the loss of 1.2 million jobs and 240 billion euros in retail revenue by 2015 in the Europe’s film, television, music and software industries.

Meanwhile the ICC has launched the 11th edition of its flagship intellectual property (IP) publication ICC Intellectual Property Roadmap: Current and Emerging Issues for Business and Policymakers.

Presenting the new edition in Geneva, during the inaugural Licensing Executives Society International’s (LESI) Global Technology Impact Forum (GTIF), David Koris, Chair of the ICC Commission on Intellectual Property, said: “The IP Roadmap has undergone extensive updates to reflect key developments in the IP policy landscape. It is an invaluable tool to bring policymakers and business leaders worldwide up to date on IP-related issues, from measures to control copyright and trademark infringement on the Internet to the mediation of IP disputes.”

Containing contributions from ICC figures and members from around the globe, the Roadmap is a reference tool to help business, policy and legal people, keep pace with the rapidly evolving intellectual property landscape. Published every two years, it is translated into several languages including Arabic, Chinese, German, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish and Ukrainian.

Most sections of the 11th edition Roadmap have been updated to highlight IP developments arising from technological, economic, political and social changes. These include the decision to open up the generic Top Level Domain name space, measures to control copyright and trademark infringement on the Internet, and efforts to address the high costs and lengthy proceedings necessary to obtain patents in multiple jurisdictions (such as more intensive cooperation between patent offices, further steps in the EU initiative to create a unitary patent and patent litigation system, and reform bringing the US patent system one step closer to other patent systems worldwide).

Other developments, with implications for the life sciences, include the conclusion of the Nagoya Protocol on Access and Benefit Sharing in relation to genetic resources, and the protection of similar drugs in the EU and the US.

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