America's IP enforcement coordinator issues report calling for strong protection domestically and abroad

 

By Emmanuel Legrand

The United States Intellectual Property Enforcement Coordinator (IPEC), Vishal Amin, has issued the United States Joint Strategic Plan on Intellectual Property covering the period 2020-2023. The Joint Strategic Plan (JSP) is based on a comprehensive government-wide approach focusing on developing America’s overall intellectual property policy "to advance innovation and creativity, and to ensure effective intellectual property protection and enforcement, domestically and abroad."

  "On the domestic front, the Administration will continue to work to ensure that our intellectual property laws are kept up to date, and that they promote American innovation and creativity. Intellectual property is integral to our nation’s economic competitiveness and the growth of our innovative economy," reads the report.

  Internationally, according to the report, "American innovators and creators must be able to operate in foreign markets that provide them with clear paths to secure and use their IP. Countries and foreign companies should not be allowed to profit off of the theft or misappropriation of American intellectual property, including, for example, by trade secret theft, IP infringement, piracy, forced technology transfers or localisation requirements."

Protect USA's innovative economy

  Reads the report: "The Administration has made clear that our intellectual property enforcement policy includes all areas of intellectual property and innovation policy – copyrights, patents, trademarks, and trade secrets – and involves nearly every sector of our economy. Our strategic approach makes clear that our economic prosperity relies upon our leadership in technology and creativity, and we must protect our innovative economy from those who steal intellectual property and unfairly exploit the innovations of free societies."

  The IPEC is part of the White House administration and coordinates IP issues among the various government agencies dealing with intellectual property (the Departments of Commerce, Justice, Homeland Security, State, Treasury, Defense, Health and Human Services, and Agriculture, the Office of the US Trade Representative, and the US Copyright Office). The Administration’s four-part strategic approach includes: engagement with US trading partners; effective use of all legal authorities, including trade tools; expanded law enforcement action and cooperation; and engagement and partnership with the private sector and other stakeholders.

  "Over the past 4 years, the Administration has taken unprecedented measures to protect American intellectual property,” said Amin. “Our Joint Strategic Plan lays out a vision and strategy to set the stage for the efforts by the United States going into the next decade.”

Fix outdated copyright safe harbours

  The Recorded Industry Association of America (RIAA), has welcomed the introduction in the report of "a vital commitment to review the impact of the copyright safe harbour in Section 512 of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (1998) on IP protection and enforcement domestically and around the world." For Reacting to the report, George York, the Senior Vice President of International Policy at RIAA, said the Plan’s focus on continuing the review of what he called "outdated US copyright safe harbours" was a positive step forward.

  He elaborated: "Given that the copyright safe harbours are currently undergoing re-evaluation in Congress and that both the current Administration and President-elect Biden have previously criticized overbroad immunity, it is no time to lock old flawed laws into trade agreements or otherwise pre-empt congressional reform. We applaud the inclusion of this vital piece of the IPEC’s Joint Strategic Plan and look forward to the new Administration carrying it forward to build on former Vice President and Senator Biden’s longstanding commitment to strong intellectual property laws that boost innovation and protect America’s artists and creators.”