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Failure to provide adequate level of intellectual property protection — US puts India on priority watch list

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The USTR has stressed on the need for improved enforcement against counterfeiting and piracy.

New Delhi , May 4

INDIA is in the league of 15 trading partners of the United States being monitored by the United States Trade Representative (USTR) under its `priority watch list'.

The US move is for India's failure to provide an "adequate level of intellectual property right (IPR) protection or enforcement or market access for persons relying on intellectual property protection."

The Annual Special 301 report, released in Washington on Tuesday said the other countries under this category include Argentina, the Bahamas, Brazil, Egypt, European Union, Indonesia, Korea, Kuwait, Lebanon, Pakistan, the Philippines, Russia, Taiwan and Turkey.

Addressing the failure of these 15 countries to provide sufficient level of IPR protection with "significant concern," the report said the US would consider all options, including but not limited to initiation of dispute settlement consultations, in cases where countries do not appear to have implemented fully their obligations under the WTO Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPs)."

USTR placed totally 52 countries as priority foreign countries, priority watch list, watch list or Section 306 monitoring category. The only `priority foreign country' is Ukraine as it is pursuing `the most onerous or egregious policies that have the greatest adverse impact on US right holders or products' and hence is `subject to accelerated investigations and possible sanctions.' Among the 33 trading partners on the `watch list' are Bulgaria, Canada, Chile, Peru, Malaysia, Mexico, Venezuela and Vietnam, while China and Paraguay are re-designated for "Section 306" monitoring. Under Section 306 monitoring list, the USTR could move directly to the application of trade sanctions against either country if monitoring shows a slippage in enforcement of bilateral IPR Agreements.

USTR set apart special attention to the increasingly important issue of the need for significantly improved enforcement against counterfeiting and piracy, with particular emphasis on the ongoing campaign to reduce production of unauthorised copies of "optical media" products such as CDs, VCDs (video compact discs), DVDs and CD-ROMS.

Counterfeiting of trademarked goods is an increasing problem in many countries, including Brazil, Bulgaria, India, Indonesia, Lebanon, Mexico, Pakistan and Paraguay, the Philippines, Russia, Venezuela and Vietnam, the report said adding that "the issue in these and other countries ultimately is one of the foreign government's political will to effectively address piracy and counterfeiting". It said what was once a localised industry focussed on the copying of high-end designer goods has now become a sophisticated global business involving the manufacturing and sale of counterfeit versions of everything from soaps, shampoos, razors and batteries to cigarettes, alcoholic beverages and automobile parts, as well as medicines and healthcare products.

The USTR report warned that it would continue to use all "statutory tools" to improve intellectual property protection in countries where it is inadequate including through implementation of the Generalised System of Preferences, other trade preference programmes and ongoing GSP reviews of countries including Brazil, the Dominican Republic, Kazakhstan, Lebanon, Russia and Uzbekistan.

Finally, referring to last August WTO General Council adoption of the "TRIPs/health solution", the report recalled that under the terms of the solution, a country might issue a compulsory licence to export needed pharmaceuticals to a country that lacks manufacturing capacity.

It requires exporting and importing countries to comply with certain transparency and notification obligations.