US Trade Rep sets aside IPR allegations vs RP

The US Trade Representative has dismissed a case against the Philippines filed by the International Intellectual Property Alliance (IIPA) and has retained the country in the ordinary watchlist of intellectual property rights violators.

The Intellectual Property Office of the Department of Trade and Industry said the Office of the US Trade Representative ruled in favor of the Philippines and decided against elevating the country to the priority watch list under the US Trade Act.

IPO director general Emma Francisco said a notification from the US embassy in Manila informed Philippine trade officials that the USTR was not upgrading the Philippines to the priority list which is so far composed of countries notorious for blatant violations of IPR laws.

Alarmed by the surge in bootlegging last year, the IIPA had started lobbying for the US government to put the Philippines back on the priority watch list but the government brushed off the accusations.

In its official position, the Philippine government said the frustration over the enforcement of the country's Intellectual Property Rights Law stemmed from the "lack of perseverance" on the part of the right holders who do not see their cases through the conviction of violators.

The IPPA, a coalition of seven trade associations representing US copyright based industries, has petitioned for the elevation of the Philippines from the ordinary watch list to the priority watch list.

The association alleged that piracy is prevalent in all sectors of copyright industries, from optical media such as computer software, VHS cassettes compact discs to cable television and printed materials.

According to the DTI-IPO, however, there is actually a decreasing trend in terms of value from 1995 to 1999 due to measures against violations of intellectual property rights.

"The Philippines has the lowest incidence of piracy in the ASEAN and the IIPA itself reported that reproduction of pirated products come from neighboring countries like Malaysia and Taiwan," the DTI-IPO said in a position paper. DTI-IPO said the International Anti-counterfeiting Coalition singled out Russia, Singapore and Thailand for special consideration the US Trade Representative's priority watch list with the recommendation to elevate Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Italy, Korea, Malaysia, Mexico and Taiwan to the Ordinary Watch list.

The DTI-IPO also said that in 1999, government confiscated 4,514,996 items valued at P285.137 million. The Department of Justice also recorded 394 cases received, 185 of which has been resolved with 209 still under preliminary investigation.

"The frustration in the area of enforcement is due to the lack of perseverance on the part of the rights holders who settle the cases during investigation and even before the hearings can be held or concluded," the DTI-IPO said.

The IIPA's petition was prompted b the surge in bootlegging last year when pirated materials hit the streets openly, most of which were manufactured locally for the firs time.

In the past, these products were either smuggled from Taiwan and Malaysia. The IIPA said the South East Asian syndicates are rapidly increasing their presence in the Philippines.

The IIPA also said the Philippines has one of the highest incidence cable piracy in the region as cable providers continue to make unauthorized transmission of net Hollywood films due to the lack of government regulation.

The association also said the Philippines violated its obligations under the Trade Related Intellectual Property Rights provision of the World Trade Organization agreements when it failed to create new procedures for ex parte civil searches of suspended infringers.

"The Philippines also needs comprehensive optical media regulation, strong laws against cable piracy, adjustments in its e-commerce legislation regarding the responsibilities of network and on-line service providers," the IIPA said. "This long list of problems justifies elevating the Philippines to the Priority Watch list."

Elevation to this list would make the Philippines highly vulnerable to trade sanctions including the withdrawal of privileges being enjoyed by Philippine exporters.