2017 Special 301 Report on Copyright Protection and Enforcement
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2017 SPECIAL 301 REPORT ON COPYRIGHT PROTECTION AND ENFORCEMENT Submitted February 9, 2017 to the United States Trade Representative by the International Intellectual Property Alliance® © 2017 International Intellectual Property Alliance Material in this report is protected by copyright. it may, however, be reproduced for non-commercial purposes or quoted with appropriate attribution to the International Intellectual Property Alliance. International Intellectual Property Alliance® is a registered service mark of International Intellectual Property Alliance. IIPA® is a registered service mark of the International Intellectual Property Alliance. The logo (three circles with a “c” in the center and the globe design) is a service mark of the International Intellectual Property Alliance. TABLE OF CONTENTS INTERNATIONAL INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY ALLIANCE 2017 SPECIAL 301 REPORT ON COPYRIGHT PROTECTION AND ENFORCEMENT SUBMISSION: Letter to Mr. Probir Mehta, Assistant United States Trade Representative for Innovation and Intellectual Property, Office of the United States Trade Representative APPENDIX A: Country Surveys Priority Watch List Chile ................................................................................................................................................. 1 China ............................................................................................................................................... 6 India ................................................................................................................................................ 21 Mexico ............................................................................................................................................ 33 Russian Federation ....................................................................................................................... 44 Taiwan ............................................................................................................................................ 55 Ukraine ........................................................................................................................................... 62 Vietnam .......................................................................................................................................... 71 Watch List Brazil .............................................................................................................................................. 82 Canada ........................................................................................................................................... 93 Colombia ...................................................................................................................................... 103 Indonesia ...................................................................................................................................... 107 Peru .............................................................................................................................................. 118 Switzerland ................................................................................................................................... 124 Thailand ........................................................................................................................................ 130 United Arab Emirates.................................................................................................................... 141 Annex – Short Country Summaries Argentina ....................................................................................................................................... A-1 Barbados ....................................................................................................................................... A-2 Costa Rica ..................................................................................................................................... A-3 Ecuador ......................................................................................................................................... A-3 © 2017 International Intellectual Property Alliance 2017 Special 301: Table of Contents Issued February 9, 2017, Page 1 www.iipawebsite.com Egypt ............................................................................................................................................. A-4 Guatemala ..................................................................................................................................... A-4 Jamaica ......................................................................................................................................... A-5 Kuwait ............................................................................................................................................ A-5 Turkey ........................................................................................................................................... A-6 Venezuela...................................................................................................................................... A-7 APPENDIX B: History of Countries’ Special 301 Placement (1989-2016) and IIPA’s 2017 Special 301 Recommendations International Intellectual Property Alliance (IIPA) 2017 Special 301: Table of Contents Page 2 I NTERNATIONAL I NTELLECTUAL P ROPERTY A LLIANCE® TH 1818 N STREET, NW, 8 FLOOR ∙ WASHINGTON, DC 20036 ∙ TEL (202) 355-7900 ∙ FAX (202) 355-7899 ∙ WWW.IIPAWEBSITE.COM ∙ EMAIL: [email protected] February 9, 2017 Submitted via regulations.gov Docket No. USTR–2016–0026 Mr. Probir Mehta Assistant United States Trade Representative for Innovation and Intellectual Property Office of the United States Trade Representative 600 17th Street, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20508 Re: IIPA Written Submission Regarding 2017 Special 301 Review: Identification of Countries Under Section 182 of the Trade Act of 1974: Request for Public Comment and Notice of Public Hearing, 81 Fed. Reg. 95722 (Dec. 28, 2016) Dear Mr. Mehta: The International Intellectual Property Alliance (IIPA) provides this response to the above-captioned Federal Register Notice requesting written submissions from the public concerning intellectual property protection and market access regimes in U.S. trading partners, in the “Special 301” review.1 The ultimate goal of Special 301 is not to catalogue trade barriers as such, but rather to enhance the ability of U.S. creators to reach foreign markets through legitimate channels, physical and online. To do this, these markets need copyright laws that meet high standards for protection; efficient copyright enforcement; sound legal structures that enable healthy licensing markets; and elimination of market access barriers and unfair competition. Markets with these features also help our trading partners to develop, nurture, and enjoy the benefits of their own local cultural and creative output. The real beneficiary is the consumer, who will have greater access, through more avenues than ever before, to increasingly diverse creative output—the literary works, music, movies, and TV programming, video games, software, and other products and services that depend on and are protected by copyright. With this broad vision in mind, IIPA has participated in every Special 301 review since the 1988 Trade Act created this process to help the U.S. Government identify “foreign countries that deny adequate and effective protection of intellectual property rights or deny fair and equitable market access to U.S. persons who rely on intellectual property protection.”2 This year, as in the past reviews, we provide public comments on acts, practices and policies of our key trading partners that present obstacles to achieving this vision. Changing market conditions and new technologies continue to create enormous opportunities, with huge potential to expand economic growth and creative activity in key foreign markets. Unfortunately, much of this potential for economic and creative growth has gone unrealized, because of inadequate copyright protection and market access barriers. IIPA’s recommendations therefore also discuss emerging best practices to address these issues. This year’s IIPA Submission focuses on markets where we believe active engagement by the U.S. Government will reap positive results for creators and the industries that support them. In particular, we highlight key opportunities to enforce specific obligations to the United States that many of these countries have taken on over the past years, in trade agreements and otherwise, but which remain unfulfilled. If the challenges to the creative 1IIPA will file under separate cover a Notice of Intent to Testify at the March 8, 2017 public hearing on Special 301. 219 U.S.C. section 2242(a)(1). 8601359.1 IIPA 2017 Special 301 Letter to USTR, February 9, 2017, page ii industries identified in this submission can be met and addressed, that will create more good jobs, promote exports, and contribute generally to healthy economic growth in the U.S. and abroad. We applaud USTR for making the Special 301 process a positive catalyst for change to address our creative industries’ challenges in key markets around the world. We also commend USTR for maintaining Special 301’s focus on improving copyright protection and enforcement. This is clearly what Congress intended. IIPA’s 2017 Submission includes this letter and two appendices. In Appendix A, IIPA provides reports on 16