…According to Inside U.S. Trade (paywalled) President Trump told reporters “I don’t expect to have very much of a problem” with Congressional implementation of the deal. However, some Democrats in Congress and some civil society groups oppose key provisions and plan to block ratification unless certain provisions are changed. Among the issues are intellectual property concerns.
Read MoreThe New Zealand Ministry of Trade and Export Growth has formally announced that the CPTPP has been ratified by six countries – Australia, Canada, Singapore, New Zealand, Japan and Mexico – and will take affect on December 30. The sixth country (Australia) gave formal notification today, so the agreement will be in force among these six countries after the required 60 day period.
Read MorePIJIP has researched IP and trade for a while, but we’ve mostly focused on FTAs that included the US. This year we’ve begun to broaden our view – to look more closely at agreements like RCEP and other Asia-Pacific agreements. This fall we began a detailed comparison of CPTPP, RCEP, CETA, RCEP, EU-Mercosur, EU-Japan, and the China-Korea FTA, with a focus on the copyright and enforcement provisions, and with an eye toward provisions that affect the digital economy. In the last few couple of weeks we’ve begun looking into the provisions in USMCA as well. This post compares some of the existing text on two provisions: the ‘balance’ provision and protection of TPMs.
Read MoreTrade negotiators from the U.S., Canada and Mexico have agreed to a new NAFTA text. To take effect, the agreement will need to be approved by legislatures in all countries…. The Intellectual Property chapter lengthens copyright terms, and it does not include a version of the copyright balance language found in Art. 16.88 of the TPP. It requires 10 years of marketing exclusivity for biologic drugs and patents on second uses.
Read MoreThe U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) is conducting its annual review of country eligibility for trade benefits under the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA). This law allows beneficiary countries to export certain goods into the U.S. duty-free. The benefits are conditional upon a set of criteria, which includes the protection of intellectual property. The International Intellectual Property Association (IIPA) has filed comments to USTR arguing that South Africa’s copyright reform legislation, if it becomes law, “would place South Africa out of compliance with the AGOA eligibility criteria regarding intellectual property.”
Read MoreLast week, the U.S. Congressional Research Service released a report, NAFTA Renegotiation and Modernization, which describes U.S. negotiating objectives chapter by chapter, citing publicly available information. It notes that the U.S. has tabled language on fair use that walks back the commitment to balance found in the TPP text.
Read MoreThe South African Portfolio Committee on Trade and Industry has released its report on its most recent copyright reform debate. The summary notes: “An area of major contention was whether the Copyright Act should be based on the ‘fair use’ or the ‘fair dealing’ principle. The Committee strongly favoured ‘the fair use’ principle but with exceptions to manage the openness of the system… “
Read MoreThe American University Washington College of Law (AUWCL) Program on Information Justice and Intellectual Property (PIJIP) is pleased to announce the fifth convening of the Global Congress on Intellectual Property and the Public Interest. The Congress will take place the week of September 24, 2018. It is the main convening of a global network of over 800 researchers, activists, and practitioners who work on the intersection of intellectual property and promotion of the public interest.
Read MoreThe EU, Japan, Saudi Arabia, Taiwan and Ukraine have formally asked to join the WTO consultations between the U.S. and China over the protection of intellectual property rights. The U.S. requested consultations with China last month, alleging that China discriminates against foreign patent holders.
Read MoreLast week, China warned that the U.S.’s threat of unilateral sanctions under Section 301 of the Trade Act violates its WTO commitment to settle disputes within the WTO Dispute Settlement framework, and it referred to a previous case in which a panel addresses how the U.S. could use Section 301 and stay within the bounds of the WTO framework.
Read MorePIJIP’s research indicates that American firms operating overseas in industries that rely on copyright limitations enjoy better outcomes on average when our trading partners’ limitations are more open – defined as being open to the use of any type of work, by any user, or with a general exception that is open to any purpose subject to protections of the legitimate interests of right holders. Econometric research on both the activities of foreign affiliates of U.S. firms and service exports by U.S. firms illustrate this conclusion. At the same time, firms in the more traditional “copyright sectors” (i.e. – music, movies, and printed media), do not seem to be negatively affected by greater balance and openness in copyright limitations.
Read MoreThe U.S. Trade Representative has requested comments for the 2018 Special 301 Review, in which it seeks to “identify countries that deny adequate and effective protection of intellectual property rights (IPR) or deny fair...
Read MoreAbstract: Surveys of scholars in the science and health fields have identified high journal prices to be one of many impediments to the writing and publishing of new works. One possible solution to this problem is the expansion of copyright exceptions that allow unauthorized access to copyrighted works for the purpose of conducting further research. This paper tests the link between copyright exceptions for researchers and the publishing output of health and science scholars at the country-subject level, using data on change in copyright law from the PIJIP Copyright User Rights database.
Read MoreHi all. We are currently in the process of updating our website. Posts and content may appear a bit unusual over the weekend.
Read MoreToday, PIJIP released new research on the impact of copyright balance. The release was announced at the World Intellectual Property Organization Standing Committee on Copyright and Related Rights. The research finds that...
Read MoreToday Sean Flynn and I are releasing the initial results of our research based on PIJIP’s Copyright User Rights Database. This research tool maps changes to copyright limitations and exceptions and other “user rights” from...
Read MoreOn Friday, the U.S. Trade Representative announced its Section 301 investigation of China’s “acts, policies, and practices related to technology transfer, intellectual property, and innovation.” As part of the...
Read MoreThe U.S, Mexico and Canada will begin renegotiating NAFTA this Wednesday at the Marriott Wardman Park hotel in Washington DC. Inside US Trade reports that “initial talks will focus mostly on logistics and...
Read MoreThis week the South African Parliament’s Portfolio Committee on Trade and Industry will hold three days of hearings on the Copyright Amendment Bill (B13-2017). Witnesses will give 20 minute presentations, followed by 20...
Read MorePIJIP has created a table of comments submitted to the South African Parliament’s Portfolio Committee on Trade and Industry regarding the Copyright Amendment Bill. It was last updated on July 19, 2017. Please send...
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