In response to concerns raised about the transparency of the negotiations towards a proposed Anti- Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (“ACTA”), scheduled to resume next month, the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (“USTR”) has said that the public would be kept well informed and have opportunities to provide input.
At last week’s FICPI Congress in Washington (June 6-10), FICPI members had an opportunity to discuss, and generally approved, a resolution recommending that these plurilateral negotiations on the proposed ACTA should involve public consultation with the stakeholders of the IP system, including IP professionals involved in advising users of the IP system.
On June 12, the USTR announced that it intended to move forward with these negotiations. ACTA is intended to assist governments in combating the proliferation of counterfeit and pirated goods, and has been determined by the Obama administration to be an important part of the U.S. trade agenda. The administration is said to be seeking tougher international standards for the enforcement of intellectual property rights.
The U.S. has indicated that it intends to use IPR provisions in recent U.S. free trade agreements as a model for the proposed agreement.
Public input will come through an ACTA web page on the USTR web site, town hall meetings, and an „open door“ policy. The USTR in April released a summary of issues under negotiation, which can be seen at http://www.ustr.gov/about-us/press-office/fact-sheets/2009/april/acta-summary-key-elements-under-discussion.
FICPI will continue to monitor and study issues raised by the proposed treaty prior to and during its Executive Committee meeting in Buenos Aires in January, with a view to ensuring that the views and interests of its members are clearly expressed, and heard, during the anticipated upcoming debate.
source: FICPI press release
