Comment on the 4 Country Submissions on the WIPO Development Agenda.

On Monday WIPO begins a very important debate about its future, in response to a 14 country call for a new "Development Agenda" at WIPO. The block of countries, named the "Friends of Development" (FoD), currently includes: Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Egypt, Iran, Kenya, Peru, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Tanzania and Venezuela.

The USA, UK and Mexico have also made submissions on the WIPO Development Agenda: Here are some quick comments on the four submissions:

Most lame: Mexico. Entire message is that intellectual property rights in any form are always a good thing, and that WIPO should "disseminate directly and immediately the intellectual property system in society in developing countries, highlighting its benefits and the opportunities arising from it."

Most Wacky: USA. Basically, the USA proposes WIPO set up a web page to help developing countries partner with right-owners to expand and increase intellectual property protection.

Most European: UK. They "understand" there are issues, but won’t actually support anything to undermines UK export industries.

Most substantive. 14 member Friends of Development Group;. More than 12 thousand words, it is a detailed and well-written analysis of WIPO as an institution and the role of intellectual property rights (and non-IP mechanisms) in promoting or hindering development. It discusses extensively the path to reform WIPO into a body that meets its UN mission of "promoting creative intellectual activity and [facilitating] the transfer of technology," and it discusses the need to address abuses.

   Jamie

More on WIPO DA here: http://www.cptech.org/ip/wipo/da.html

WORD COUNTS ON COUNTRY SUBMISSIONS UK proposal
All words 2569
Abuse 0
Access 0
Access to knowledge: 0
Anticompetitive 0
Consumer 0
Doha Declaration on the TRIPS 0
Education 1
Exceptions 0
Human Rights 0
Limitations 0
Market failure 0
Monopoly 0
Open source: 0
Poverty: 3
Public Health 0

Mexico
All words 1839
Abuse 0
Access 2
Access to knowledge: 0
Anticompetitive 0
Consumer 0
Doha Declaration on the TRIPS 0
Education 1
Exceptions 0
Human Rights 0
Limitations 0
Market failure 0
Monopoly 0
Open source: 0
Poverty: 4
Public Health 0

USA
All words 3059
Abuse 0
Access 3
Access to knowledge: 0
Anticompetitive 0
Consumer 0
Doha Declaration on the TRIPS 0
Education 6
Exceptions 0
Human Rights 0
Limitations 0
Market failure 0
Monopoly 0
Open source: 0
Poverty: 0
Public Health 0

Friends of Development (14 countries)
All words 12,040
Abuse 6
Access 3
Access to knowledge: 7
Anticompetitive 4
Consumer 9
Doha Declaration on the TRIPS 3
Education 3
Exceptions 3
Human Rights 2
Limitations 4
Market failure 0
Monopoly 6
Open source: 1
Poverty: 1
Public Health 5

-- 
James Love, Director, CPTech, http://www.cptech.org

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