RI in U.S. watch list on copyright piracy
RI in U.S. watch list on copyright piracy
WASHINGTON (Reuter): The United States Wednesday said
Denmark, Sweden, Ireland and Ecuador were failing to live up to
international obligations to protect copyrights from piracy.
As a result, said U.S. Trade Representative Charlene
Barshefsky, the United States plans to file World Trade
Organization (WTO) complaints against those countries.
But Indonesia remained only in the watch list of the Trade
Representative's office. This watch list included Argentina,
Egypt, the European Union, Greece, India, Paraguay, Russia and
Turkey.
The action comes out of an annual U.S. review of how countries
around the world protect copyrights and other intellectual
property, a major revenue source for the U.S. economy, from
piracy.
"The Special 301 annual review is one of the most effective
instruments in our trade policy arsenal," Barshefsky said in a
statement.
"It is much more than an in-depth review. It provides a direct
route to press countries to improve their IPR (intellectual
property rights) practices."
The review said 46 trading partners denied adequate protection
against intellectual property piracy and failed to give fair
access to their markets for U.S. products.
Barshefsky said the United States also may initiate WTO cases
against Greece and Luxembourg in the near future if they fail to
take steps to meet their obligations under an international
agreement that protects copyrights and other intellectual
property.
The Trade Representatives' office said Denmark and Sweden had
not implemented their obligations under the WTO agreement on
Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) to
provide provisional relief in civil enforcement proceedings.
It said Ireland has not changed its copyright law to comply
with TRIPS obligations and that Ecuador has failed to meet its
obligations in a number of areas.
China, which in the past has topped the U.S. list of copyright
violators, will be closely watched to be sure it complies with a
bilateral agreement on intellectual property protection. The
report noted significant progress in China on copyright
protection.
In a separate trade report, a presidential commission urged
the U.S. government to pay attention to the impact of foreign
exchange markets on U.S. trade.
The recommendation was one of several made by the Commission
on U.S.-Pacific Trade and Investment Policy on U.S. trade policy
with Asia.
"The commission recommends that the U.S. government should pay
careful attention to the impact of exchange rates on U.S.
commerce," the report said. "It should be particularly vigilant
to ensure that foreign governments do not manipulate their
exchange rates to achieve competitive advantage."
U.S. manufacturers, particularly car makers, have complained
that the strong U.S. dollar and weak Japanese yen have hurt their
competitiveness in global markets while giving Japanese
manufacturers an edge. A strong dollar makes U.S. goods more
expensive, while a weak yen makes Japanese goods cheaper.
The commission, comprising business executives, academics and
labor representatives, recommended that the U.S. government
consider negotiating a comprehensive market agreement with Japan
to eliminate formal and informal barriers to trade and
investment. The agreement also should include common rules and
enforcement measures on anti-competitive business practices.
"By almost any measure, the Japanese economy is the most
closed to foreign products, services and investment among the
major industrial nations," the report said.
"Japan's persistent failure to consume more of what the rest
of the world produces has been a brake on global economic
growth," it said.