DAILY NEWS Jul 18, 2006 2:38 PM - 0 comments

Associations Congratulate Ottawa on G8 Commitments on Intellectual Property Rights

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Organizations representing a broad cross section of Canadian industries, including software, book publishing and entertainment, today congratulated the Canadian government for taking a strong stand on intellectual property rights protection as a party to the G8 statement, "Combating IPR Piracy and Counterfeiting."

The following statement was issued by the Canadian Alliance Against Software Theft (CAAST), Canadian Anti-Counterfeiting Network (CACN), Canadian Film and Television Production Association (CFTPA), Canadian Motion Picture Distributors Association (CMPDA), Canadian Music Publishers Association (CMPA), Canadian Publishers Council (CPC), Canadian Recording Industry Association (CRIA), Entertainment Software Association of Canada (ESAC) and Music Industries Association of Canada (MIAC):

We congratulate the Government of Canada for its strong and unqualified support for intellectual property rights as expressed in the joint statement of the G8 countries in St. Petersburg, Russia. We fully support all of the commitments and actions outlined by Canada and the other G8 countries.

Furthermore, we look forward to the Canadian government fulfilling these commitments as soon as possible in order to better protect intellectual property in the digital age. The introduction and passage of new federal copyright legislation will be a key step to fulfilling the commitments.

Signed by:
Jacqueline Famulak, President
Canadian Alliance Against Software Theft (CAAST)

Doug Geralde, Chair
Canadian Anti-Counterfeiting Network (CACN)

Guy Mason, President and CEO
Canadian Film and Television Production Association (CFTPA)

Douglas C. Frith, President
Canadian Motion Picture Distributors Association (CMPDA)

Catharine Saxberg, Executive Director
Canadian Music Publishers Association (CMPA)

Jacqueline Hushion, Executive Director
Canadian Publishers Council (CPC)

Graham Henderson, President
Canadian Recording Industry Association (CRIA)

Danielle LaBossiere, Executive Director
Entertainment Software Association of Canada (ESAC)

Al Kowalenko, Executive Director
Music Industries Association of Canada (MIAC)


G8 Statement: Combating IPR Piracy and Counterfeiting

St.Petersburg, July 16, 2006

1. We reaffirm our commitment to strengthening individual and collective efforts to combat piracy and counterfeiting, especially trade in pirated and counterfeit goods and note that such efforts will contribute to the sustainable development of the world economy, including through innovations, as well as to health and safety of consumers all over the world.

2. Combating trade in pirated and counterfeit products is a complex problem which assumes, in the context of globalization, a transborder character, and can only be solved through individual and joint efforts by all nations and relevant international organizations. In that regard, we note the usefulness of international congresses and workshops devoted to effective protection and enforcement of intellectual property rights.

3. To continue the anti-piracy and anti-counterfeiting activities, we consider it necessary to enhance cooperation in that area among the G8 and other countries, as well as competent international organizations, notably the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), the World Trade Organization (WTO), the World Customs Organization, Interpol, the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), and the Council of Europe.

4. We consider it necessary to give priority to promoting and upholding laws, regulations and/or procedures to strengthen intellectual property enforcement, raising awareness in civil society and in the business community of the legal ways to protect and enforce intellectual property rights and of the threats of piracy and counterfeiting, and also to providing technical assistance in that area to developing countries. Close cooperation between law enforcement agencies, including customs authorities, is also of great importance.

5. We consider it necessary to take, in the near term, the following concrete measures which will form the basis of a G8 work plan on piracy and counterfeiting:
- to create in each G8 country a website providing businesses and individuals with information on mechanisms available and procedures necessary to secure and enforce their intellectual property rights in that country, on threats posed by piracy and counterfeiting to public health, safety and the national interests of countries, consumers and business communities, as well as on measures taken at the national and international levels to combat intellectual property rights violations, and on relevant legislation and law enforcement practices;
- to engage the OECD in preparing and focusing its report estimating the economic consequences of piracy and counterfeiting on national economies and right holders, and public health and safety;
- in cooperation with WIPO, WTO, OECD, Interpol and WCO to develop and begin implementing technical assistance pilot plans within the G8 in interested developing countries to build the capacity necessary to combat trade in counterfeit and pirated goods;
- to improve border enforcement through increased customs co-ordination and exchange of enforcement information and best practices designed to better target the trade of counterfeit goods and combat intellectual property crime at the borders, including by examining effective strategies already being implemented within the G8 Customs Administrations as models for broader cooperation;
- to prepare recommendations aimed at improving G8 member countries' cooperative actions to combat serious and organized intellectual property rights crimes.
- We instruct our experts to study the possibilities of strengthening the international legal framework pertaining to IPR enforcement.

6. Taking into account the significant volume of global trade in pirated and counterfeit products which is often linked to organized crime, as well as economic, political and moral damage caused by intellectual property rights violations and crimes, we will continue to give priority to enhancing cooperation with a view to substantially reducing the global trade in pirated and counterfeit products, and to taking effective measures against transnational networks supporting such trade.
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