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Monday February 08, 2010 |
The European Commission has posted a response to one of the many questions raised by members of the European Parliament about ACTA. The EC seeks to pacify the ACTA concerns by arguing that the treaty will be limited in scope and is targeted at commercial activities:
The Commission can inform the Honourable Member that the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA) will be in line with the body of EU legislation, which fully respects fundamental rights and freedoms and civil liberties, such as the protection of personal data. This includes the Intellectual Property Rights' relevant aspects of the Telecoms package.
ACTA should not contain measures restricting end-users’ access to the internet that would not be appropriate, proportionate and necessary within a democratic society and without a prior, fair and impartial procedure.
It is the Commission's view that ACTA is about tackling large scale illegal activity, often pursued by criminal organisations, that is causing a devastating impact on growth and employment in Europe and may have serious risks to the health and safety of consumers. It is not about limiting civil liberties or harassing consumers. acta, anti-counterfeiting trade agreement, copyright, Counterfeit, Counterfeiting, european commission Slashdot, Digg, Del.icio.us, Newsfeeder, Reddit, StumbleUpon, TwitterTagsShareMonday February 08, 2010 |
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Monday February 08, 2010 |
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The New York Times has a feature story on ACTA today that includes comments from an EU official rejecting a single solution to Internet issues as well as comments from a Swedish official calling for the release of the draft text. acta, anti-counterfeiting trade agreement, copyright, Counterfeit, Counterfeiting Slashdot, Digg, Del.icio.us, Newsfeeder, Reddit, StumbleUpon, TwitterTagsShareMonday February 08, 2010 |
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Monday February 08, 2010 |
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Finnish Member of the European Parliament Heidi Hautala has added her voice to the concerns over ACTA, calling for greater transparency. acta, anti-counterfeiting trade agreement, copyright, Counterfeit, Counterfeiting, Hautala Slashdot, Digg, Del.icio.us, Newsfeeder, Reddit, StumbleUpon, TwitterTagsShareMonday February 08, 2010 |
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Friday February 05, 2010 |
Faced with mounting criticism over ACTA secrecy, officials from both the U.S. and the EU are speaking out. In a letter to the editor at the Financial Times, the USTR's Stanford McCoy rejects the transparency concerns, claiming:
"Far from keeping them secret, governments participating in these negotiations have sought public comments, released a summary of issues under discussion, and enhanced public engagement."
Meanwhile, an EU official told EurActiv.com that media reports have oversimplified ACTA and that information has been provided to the European Parliament "whenever possible." The EU official declined to be named due to a non-disclosure agreement.
Read More ...On the other hand, UK Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills David Lammy provided the House of Commons with his government's official position on ACTA secrecy: It is current UK policy on the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement to seek the agreement of our negotiating partners to publish the draft text. However, it is the practice in trade negotiations that working documents are not disclosed without the consent of all the negotiating parties. Not all parties currently agree to the release of the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA) draft text. My officials continue to press for greater transparency with our negotiating partners. Not to be forgotten, Bridges Weekly reports on mounting concerns in the developing world over ACTA. While an official from the Chamber of Commerce argues that it is not desirable to address ACTA issues at WIPO, a developing country trade diplomat acknowledges that the developing world will face pressure to adopt ACTA-like provisions and that the process sounds like "TRIPs-plus-plus-plus." |
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Friday February 05, 2010 |
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NDP MP Charlie Angus has launched a new Facebook group called ACTA: End the Secrecy. acta, angus, anti-counterfeiting trade agreement, copyright, Counterfeit, Counterfeiting, facebook Slashdot, Digg, Del.icio.us, Newsfeeder, Reddit, StumbleUpon, TwitterTagsShareFriday February 05, 2010 |
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Thursday February 04, 2010 |
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Building on earlier disclosures from Sweden and New Zealand, the Australian press is reporting that government officials say they oppose inclusion of three strikes in ACTA and confirm that talks on the secret copyright treaty could extend into 2011. acta, anti-counterfeiting trade agreement, copyright, Counterfeit, Counterfeiting Slashdot, Digg, Del.icio.us, Newsfeeder, Reddit, StumbleUpon, TwitterTagsShareThursday February 04, 2010 |
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Thursday February 04, 2010 |
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The Washington Post's Rob Pegoraro has a piece on ACTA, expressing concern about the secret copyright treaty and fears that things may get worse. acta, anti-counterfeiting trade agreement, copyright, Counterfeit, Counterfeiting Slashdot, Digg, Del.icio.us, Newsfeeder, Reddit, StumbleUpon, TwitterTagsShareThursday February 04, 2010 |
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Wednesday February 03, 2010 |
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The USTR won't reveal ACTA, but it claims that fears associated with the still-secret treaty are based on "misconceptions." acta, anti-counterfeiting trade agreement, copyright, Counterfeit, Counterfeiting, ustr Slashdot, Digg, Del.icio.us, Newsfeeder, Reddit, StumbleUpon, TwitterTagsShareWednesday February 03, 2010 |
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Wednesday February 03, 2010 |
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Spiegel Online runs a lengthy feature on ACTA from a German perspective. acta, anti-counterfeiting trade agreement, copyright, Counterfeit, Counterfeiting, germany Slashdot, Digg, Del.icio.us, Newsfeeder, Reddit, StumbleUpon, TwitterTagsShareWednesday February 03, 2010 |
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Tuesday February 02, 2010 |
With the conclusion of the 7th round of ACTA negotiations in Guadalajara, Mexico last week, participating countries issued the now-standard boilerplate statement that merely repeats the agenda items and provides no real insight into the progress of the talks. While the statement is does little to advance the desire for greater transparency, reports from New Zealand and Sweden shed far more light on where things stand. The key points:
- The U.S. proposal for Internet enforcement has received considerable public attention, yet there are three proposals on the table that address digital enforcement and safe harbours (ie. intermediary liability). One of New Zealand's negotiators reports that a fourth proposal is currently being formulated and that it could take six more months before this chapter is settled.
- In addition to safe harbour rules, the talks in Mexico also addressed DMCA-style issues such as anti-circumvention legislation.
- The Europeans continue to push for the extension of ACTA beyond copyright and trademarks to also include patents.
- Some countries have become more open to sharing ACTA documents in response to transparency concerns, but there remain some who insist that the discussions remain strictly confidential. Both New Zealand and Sweden are on record as supporting greater transparency.
acta, anti-counterfeiting trade agreement, copyright, Counterfeit, Counterfeiting Slashdot, Digg, Del.icio.us, Newsfeeder, Reddit, StumbleUpon, TwitterTagsShareTuesday February 02, 2010 |
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