[A2k] The WIPO SCCR 19 begins its work

[James Love]

http://www.keionline.org/node/721

The WIPO SCCR 19 begins its work
By James Love
Created 14 Dec 2009 - 3:54am

This is day one of a five day meeting of the WIPO SCCR, being held in
Geneva. The main topic of discussion this week will be copyright
limitations and exceptions.

One important element of the limitations and exceptions discussion will
be a debate and a decision on how to proceed on the proposal to
negotiate a new WIPO treaty for persons who are blind, visually impaired
or have other disabilities. There are also presentations on the role of
limitations and exceptions in education, and discussions of other
topics. For example, KEI and other NGOs, academics and some WIPO experts
recommend the SCCR take up the issue of "updating" the Appendix to the
Berne Convention, which is a provision in the Berne Convention dealing
with access to works in developing countries. There are also proposals
for the SCCR to work on the issue of orphaned copyrighted works.

The SCCR will also discuss a possible treaty for broadcasting
organizations, and for performers.

The documents for the meetings are on the Internet here:
http://www.wipo.int/meetings/en/details.jsp?meeting_id=17462 [1]

Note there are requests for accreditation by 17 new organizations,
including 16 that work on disabilities.
http://www.wipo.int/edocs/mdocs/copyright/en/sccr_19/sccr_19_11.pdf [2]

In the early pre-meeting discussions, there are various bits of
information circulating about the positions of different groups. The
United States government is sending many signals that it has changed its
views on the proposal for a WIPO treaty for disabilities. The nuances of
the U.S. position are not that clear year, but in general, based upon
many conversations with U.S. officials, other governments and industry
persons talked to by the U.S. government, it seems as though the
evolving U.S. position includes the following features:

   1. an agreement to discuss a possible treaty within WIPO for
copyright limitations and exceptions for persons with disabilities, but
also to consider a range of other possible solutions ranging from
declarations on the legality of importing and exporting of works created
under exceptions, model laws, provisions in model laws within bilateral
trade agreements, or executive agreements like ACTA that fall short of
treaty status. In some versions, the shorter term and softer instruments
would not be seen as a substitute for a treaty, but rather as early
measures to build toward a treaty or another binding instrument.
   2. only a beginning of a discussion of the types of rights or
transactions that would come under a new agreement on cross-border
movements of works created under exceptions. In some versions, it would
stop quite a bit short of allowing a global library in one country to
deliver works over the Internet to persons with disabilities in other
countries.
   3. while there is a recognition that the cross-border issue would
benefit from new solutions, there is no commitment yet to global
agreements that would provide for harmonization of domestic exceptions.

The change in the U.S. has fueled more optimistic exceptions about the
positions that will be taken in Group B, the WIPO group of high income
countries that includes for example the members of the European Union,
Australia, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, Norway, Switzerland and the
Vatican. Now Group B is considered to be unlikely to strike a
confrontational opposition to the WIPO treaty for disabilities, but may
try to move the SCCR work program toward a General Assembly declaration
on a narrow agreement on very limited import and export of works created
under exceptions.

Some Countries Reportedly want Linkages

There is also talk that the United States may try to link progress on a
treaty for disabilities to progress in WIPO on the enforcement of
intellectual property rights, or new movement on a WIPO treaty for
performers. The European Union is also said to be interested in asking
for linkage between the WIPO treaty for disabilities and progress on a
WIPO treaty for performers or broadcasters. Egypt and some members of
the Africa group have indicated they may want to link progress on a
treaty for disabilities to a larger treaty on limitations and exceptions
involving education and other topics.



--
James Love, Director, Knowledge Ecology International
http://www.keionline.org | http://www.twitter.com/jamie_love
Wk: +1.202.332.2670 | US Mobile +1.202.361.3040 | Geneva Mobile +41.76.413.6584