Page:Special 301 Report 2008.pdf/2



Introduction

The "Special 301" Report is an annual review of the global state of intellectual property rights (IPR) protection and enforcement, conducted by the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) pursuant to Special 301 provisions of the Trade Act of 1974 (Trade Act). The 2008 Special 301 review process examined IPR protection and enforcement in 78 countries. Following extensive research and analysis, USTR designates 46 countries in this year's Special 301 Report in the categories of Priority Watch List, Watch List, and/or Section 306 Monitoring status. This report reflects the Administration's resolve to encourage and maintain effective IPR protection and enforcement worldwide.

The Special 301 designations and actions announced in this report are the result of close consultations with affected industry groups and other private sector representatives, foreign governments, Congressional leaders, and interagency coordination within the United States Government. This Administration is committed to using all available methods to resolve IPR-related issues and ensure that market access is fair and equitable for U.S. products of IPR-intensive industries.

The Administration's top priorities this year continue to be addressing weak IPR protection and enforcement, particularly in China and Russia. Although this year's Special 301 Report shows positive progress in many countries, rampant counterfeiting and piracy problems have continued to plague China and Russia, indicating a need for stronger IPR regimes and enforcement in those countries.

In addition to China and Russia, the Special 301 Report sets out significant concerns with respect to such trading partners as Argentina, Chile, India, Israel, Pakistan, Thailand, and Venezuela. In addition, the report notes that the United States will consider all options, including, but not limited to, initiation of dispute settlement consultations in cases where countries do not appear to have implemented fully their obligations under the World Trade Organization (WTO) Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS Agreement).

In this year's review, USTR highlights the need for significantly improved enforcement against counterfeiting and piracy, Internet piracy, counterfeit pharmaceuticals, transshipment of pirated and counterfeit goods, requirements for authorized use of legal software by government ministries, proper implementation of the TRIPS Agreement by developed and developing country WTO members, and full implementation of TRIPS Agreement standards by new WTO members at the time of their accession.

Positive Developments

Several countries made significant positive progress on IPR protection and enforcement in 2007. For example, Russia has increased penalties for copyright crimes and stepped up action against unlicensed optical disc plants. China has made progress on implementation of measures to