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  Mexico's new plant variety protection law went into effect on October 26. However, formal ratification of the UPOV Agreement has not been completed.

A new Azerbaijani law on copyright and neighboring rights comes into force.

Slovenia becomes a party to the Geneva Phonograms Convention.

Panama becomes a party to the Paris Convention.

Estonia becomes a party to the Locarno Agreement Establishing an International Classification of Industrial Designs. 

NOVEMBER

 The China Multimedia Association (CMA) and six of Taiwan's thirteen CD manufacturers signed a "CD-making copyright protection agreement" on November 25, to protect their products from counterfeiters.

<li>Vietnam issued implementing regulations for its 1994 copyright ordinance (codified in Vietnam's Civil Code in July 1996). However, the regulations did not clarify a "point of attachment" for foreign works.</li>

<li>The U.S. requested the formation of a panel at the November 20 meeting of the WTO Dispute Settlement Body on the India "mailbox" case.</li>

<li>Guinea becomes a party to Nice and Locarno Agreements.</li>

<li>Trinidad and Tobago become party to the Brussels Convention Relating to the Distribution of Program-Carrying Signals Transmitted by Satellite. This is a requirement of the U.S.-Trinidad and Tobago bilateral IPR Agreement.</li>

<li>Colombia issues regulations implementing a Television Law.</li> </ul>

DECEMBER

<ul style="list-style-type:circle;list-style-image:none;"> <li>The Japanese Diet enacted amendments to its copyright law to grant fifty years of retroactive protection to sound recordings on December 17. The amendments will go into effect on March 25.</li>

<li>Mexico passed a new copyright law on December 24 which address a number of inadequacies in the former law, but contains certain provisions that are not consistent with Mexico's obligations under NAFTA, particularly regarding the lack of criminal penalties for sound recording piracy, the absence of civil remedies, and the possible decriminalization of computer software.</li> </ul>