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Federal Register Notice on WIPO Treaty Comments (fwd)
This is the full text of the PTO Notice for Comments on the WIPO
Treaty. Note that comments are due by November 22, 1996, and can be
submitted by electronic mail to: diploconf@uspto.gov
(for background on the WIPO treaties and issues,
see http://www.public-domain.org )
jamie
[Federal Register: October 17, 1996 (Volume 61, Number 202)]
[Notices]
[Page 54159-54160]
>From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE
Patent and Trademark Office
Request for Comments on the Chairman's Text of the Diplomatic
Conference on Certain Copyright and Neighboring Rights Questions, To Be
Held in Geneva From December 2 to 20, 1996
AGENCY: Patent and Trademark Office, Commerce.
ACTION: Notice and request for public comments.
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SUMMARY: As the Administration prepares for the Diplomatic Conference
on Certain Copyright and Neighboring Rights Questions, to be held in
Geneva from December 2 to 20, 1996, we invite interested parties to
submit written comments on the Chairman's text and to attend a public
briefing to discuss the Chairman's text of the Diplomatic Conference.
During the briefing, Jukka Liedes, Chairman of the Committee of
Experts, will discuss the text and will be available to answer
questions.
DATES: The briefing will be held on November 12, 1996, from 1 p.m. to 5
p.m. Written comments on the Chairman's text are due on or before
November 22, 1996.
ADDRESSES: The briefing will be held in Marriott's Crystal Forum, a
part of the Crystal City Marriott Hotel located in The Underground,
1999 Jefferson Davis Highway, Arlington, Virginia.
A transcript of the meeting will be made available for public
inspection in room 902 of Crystal Park Two, 2121 Crystal Drive,
Arlington, Virginia. The transcript will also be made available through
the Patent and Trademark Office's home page, which is located at
www.uspto.gov.
Written comments should be submitted to the Commissioner of Patents
and Trademarks, Box 4, Patent and Trademark Office, Washington, D.C.
20231, marked to the attention of Ms. Carmen Guzman Lowrey, Associate
Commissioner for Governmental and International Affairs. Written
comments may also be submitted electronically by sending them to Mr.
Keith Kupferschmid at diploconf@uspto.gov.
All written comments received will be made available for public
inspection in room 902 of Crystal Park Two, 2121 Crystal Drive,
Arlington, Virginia.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Keith M. Kupferschmid by telephone
at (703) 305-9300, by facsimile at (703) 305-8885, by electronic mail
at diploconf@uspto.gov or by mail marked to his attention and addressed
to the Commissioner of Patents and Trademarks, Box 4, Patent and
Trademark Office, Washington, D.C. 20231. It is not necessary for
interested parties to contact the PTO to request to attend the
briefing.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The United States is committed to making
progress in the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) toward
improving international protection for works protected by copyright and
neighboring rights. We want to build upon the international
intellectual property norms that were set in the Agreement on Trade-
Related Aspects of Intellectual Property (TRIPs). This is essential,
especially in view of the need to deal with the intellectual property
issues associated with the Global Information Infrastructure (GII). To
accomplish this goal, the members of WIPO, with the leadership of the
United States, are working to establish three new international
agreements, commonly referred to as--
<bullet> A Protocol to the Berne Convention for the Protection of
Literary and Artistic Works, which would modernize the Berne Convention
to take into account new forms of expression and new uses of
copyrighted works that have evolved due to technological developments
since the Berne Convention's most recent revision in 1971.
<bullet> A New Instrument for the Protection of Performers and
Producers of Phonograms, which would improve international standards of
protection for sound recordings, and protect the rights of certain
performers in respect of their live performances.
<bullet> A Treaty for the Sui Generis Protection of Databases,
which would ensure adequate incentives to invest in creating databases,
through a new type of protection that would safeguard databases against
destruction of their commercial value.
These agreements would provide the levels of protection for both
copyright and neighboring rights that are critical to the development
of the commercial potential of the GII.
Much progress has been made in the negotiations in WIPO through the
submission of treaty proposals by the United States and other
countries. Based on these submissions and the views expressed in
meetings of the Committee of Experts, the Chairman of the Committee of
Experts has prepared three draft treaties which address digital and
conventional copyright issues. These proposed treaties will be taken up
at a Diplomatic Conference on Certain Copyright and Neighboring Rights
Issues to be convened December 2-20, in Geneva at WIPO headquarters.
[[Page 54160]]
As the Administration prepares for the Diplomatic Conference, we
invite interested parties to submit written comments on the Chairman's
text of the draft treaties. These comments should be received by the
PTO no later than November 22, 1996.
In addition, to facilitate a better understanding of the text of
the draft treaties, the PTO will hold a briefing to discuss them.
During the briefing, Jukka Liedes, Chairman of the Committee of
Experts, will discuss the text and will be available to answer
questions.
Copies of the draft treaties and other information relevant to the
Diplomatic Conference can be found at the PTO's home page, located at
www.uspto.gov. Copies of the draft treaties will also be available at
the briefing and upon request.
Dated: October 10, 1996.
Bruce A. Lehman,
Assistant Secretary of Commerce and Commissioner of Patents and
Trademarks.
[FR Doc. 96-26511 Filed 10-16-96; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-16-P
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James Love / love@tap.org / P.O. Box 19367, Washington, DC 20036
Voice: 202/387-8030; Fax 202/234-5176
Center for Study of Responsive Law
Consumer Project on Technology; http://www.essential.org/cpt
Taxpayer Assets Project; http://www.tap.org
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