Phl eludes inclusion in IPR watchlist

MANILA, Philippines -  The Philippines remains out of the US government’s watch list of countries with problematic intellectual property rights (IPR) protection, with China continuing to be on the priority list.

The latest edition of the Special 301 Report released by the Office of the US Trade Representative showed that the Philippines for the fourth straight year was not included in the list of countries with IPR problems.

The US government lauded the country’s camcording laws, but persisting trademark protection problems cited.

“The United States urges countries to adopt laws and enforcement practices designed to prevent unathorized camcording, such as laws that have been adopted in Japan, the Philippines, and Canada,” the report said.

“However, in numerous countries, legal and procedural obstacles exist to securing trademark rights. Many other countries, including Argentina, Brazil, India, Malaysia, and the Philippines, reportedly have slow opposition proceedings while Russia and Panama have no administrative opposition proceedings,” it added.

This year’s report placed 34 countries on the watchlist. Of the 34, 11 were included in the priority watchlist. These countries are Algeria, Argentina, Chile, China, India, Indonesia, Kuwait, Russia, Thailand, Ukraine, and Venezuela.

A country’s placement on the priority watchlist or watchlist means there are problems on IPR protection, enforcement, or market access for persons relying on IP.

“The report identifies foreign trading partners where IP protection and enforcement has deteriorated or remained at unacceptable levels and where market access for Americans who rely on IP protection has been unfairly compromised,” it said.

“For example, USTR continues to place China on the Priority Watchlist because longstanding and new IP concerns strongly merit attention.  China is home to widespread infringing activity, including trade secret theft, rampant online piracy and counterfeiting, and high levels of physical pirated and counterfeit exports to markets around the globe,” the report said.

The Philippines had been taken out of the list in 2014 after the government enacted a series of significant legislative and regulatory reforms that enhanced the protection and enforcement of IPR in the country.

Prior to its removal from the list, the country was either part of the watchlist or priority watchlist since 1994.

The government, through the Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines, has been stepping up efforts to continuously curb counterfeiting and piracy in the country. It also vowed to keep the country out of the list.