Intellectual property (IP) is a category of property that includes intangible creations of the human intellect. There are many types of intellectual property, and some countries recognize more than others. The best-known types are patents, copyrights, trademarks, and trade secrets. The modern concept of intellectual property developed in England in the 17th and 18th centuries. The term "intellectual property" began to be used in the 19th century, though it was not until the late 20th century that intellectual property became commonplace in most of the world's legal systems.
The World Intellectual Property Organization Copyright Treaty is an international treaty on copyright law adopted by the member states of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) in 1996. It provides additional protections for copyright to respond to advances in information technology since the formation of previous copyright treaties before it. As of August 2023, the treaty has 115 contracting parties. The WCT and WIPO Performances and Phonograms Treaty, are together termed WIPO "internet treaties".
The Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) is an agency of the United States federal government responsible for developing and promoting American trade policy. Part of the Executive Office of the President, it is headed by the U.S. Trade Representative, a Cabinet-level position that serves as the U.S. President's primary advisor, negotiator, and spokesperson on trade matters. USTR has more than two hundred employees, with offices in Geneva, Switzerland, and Brussels, Belgium.
Intellectual property rights (IPRs) have been acknowledged and protected in China since 1980. China has acceded to the major international conventions on protection of rights to intellectual property. Domestically, protection of intellectual property law has also been established by government legislation, administrative regulations, and decrees in the areas of trademark, copyright, and patent. Although this IP framework is developing quickly, as of 2023 it remains less developed than most industrialized countries.
The Protection of Broadcasts and Broadcasting Organizations Treaty also known as the Broadcast Treaty was a treaty proposed by the World Intellectual Property Organization to afford broadcasters some control and copyright-like control over the content of their broadcasts. Under this treaty, media broadcasters would have the right to protect their broadcasts from reproduction, retransmission, and public communication, with copyright protection over fifty years. A first treaty proposal was established in 2006, and a revised draft was issued the same year to include protection rights for webcasting, netcasting and simulcasting. However, the proposal faced mixed reception from various companies. The United States tried to re-open discussions about the treaty in 2008, without success, meaning that international rules to protect television broadcasts are still addressed by the 1961 Rome treaty.
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to intellectual property:
The Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA) is a multilateral treaty for the purpose of establishing international standards for intellectual property rights enforcement that did not enter into force. The agreement aims to establish an international legal framework for targeting counterfeit goods, generic medicines and copyright infringement on the Internet, and would create a new governing body outside existing forums, such as the World Trade Organization, the World Intellectual Property Organization, and the United Nations.
The Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works, usually known as the Berne Convention, was an international assembly held in 1886 in the Swiss city of Bern by ten European countries with the goal to agree on a set of legal principles for the protection of original work. They drafted and adopted a multi-party contract containing agreements for a uniform, border-crossing system that became known under the same name. Its rules have been updated many times since then. The treaty provides authors, musicians, poets, painters, and other creators with the means to control how their works are used, by whom, and on what terms. In some jurisdictions these type of rights are being referred to as copyright.
Intellectual property organizations are organizations that are focused on copyrights, trademarks, patents, or other intellectual property law concepts. This includes international intergovernmental organizations that foster governmental cooperation in the area of copyrights, trademarks and patents, as well as non-governmental, non-profit organizations, lobbying organizations, think tanks, notable committees, and professional associations.
The Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) is an international legal agreement between all the member nations of the World Trade Organization (WTO). It establishes minimum standards for the regulation by national governments of different forms of intellectual property (IP) as applied to nationals of other WTO member nations. TRIPS was negotiated at the end of the Uruguay Round of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) between 1989 and 1990 and is administered by the WTO.
Copyright infringement is the use of works protected by copyright without permission for a usage where such permission is required, thereby infringing certain exclusive rights granted to the copyright holder, such as the right to reproduce, distribute, display or perform the protected work, or to make derivative works. The copyright holder is typically the work's creator, or a publisher or other business to whom copyright has been assigned. Copyright holders routinely invoke legal and technological measures to prevent and penalize copyright infringement.
Panama has passed several laws protecting intellectual property in the country.
Egyptian copyright law has evolved over time. The currently applicable legislation in Egypt with regard to copyright is Book Three of the Law on the Protection of Intellectual Property Rights 82 of 2002, which entered into force on 3 June 2002, the day following its publication in the Official Gazette. The implementing decree is Prime Ministerial Decree 497 of 2005.
Iran is a member of the WIPO since 2001 and has acceded to several WIPO intellectual property treaties. Iran joined the Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property in 1959. In December 2003 Iran became a party to the Madrid Agreement and the Madrid Protocol for the International Registration of Marks. In 2005 Iran joined the Lisbon Agreement for the Protection of Appellations of Origin and their International Registration, which ensures the protection of geographical names associated with products. As at February 2008 Iran had yet to accede to The Hague Agreement for the Protection of Industrial Designs.
China International Copyright Expo is an annual event that brings companies and organizations, both governmental and independent, to China to discuss various aspects of copyright and intellectual property rights (IPR). The Expo was first held in 2008 and was attended by experts and organizations from countries such as the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, Japan, South Korea, and many more. The Expo "actively builds an international copyright trade platform, which is focused on industry exchange and trade, this expo consists of four parts; International Copyright Forum, Industrial Exhibition, Thematic Activities, and Cultural Performance Activities."
The Special 301 Report is prepared annually by the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) that identifies trade barriers to United States companies and products due to the intellectual property laws, such as copyright, patents and trademarks, in other countries. By April 30 of each year, the USTR must identify countries which do not provide "adequate and effective" protection of intellectual property rights or "fair and equitable market access to United States persons that rely upon intellectual property rights".
Copyright law of Indonesia is set out in the Copyright Act, namely, current, Act No. 28 of 2014. In law, the notion of copyright is "the exclusive rights for the creator or the recipient the right to publish or reproduce the creations or give permission for it by not reducing the restrictions according to the laws and regulations that apply".
The Beijing Treaty on Audiovisual Performances is a multilateral treaty which regulates copyright for audiovisual performances and expands the performers' rights. It was adopted on 26 June 2012 by the Diplomatic Conference on the Protection of Audiovisual Performances of the World Intellectual Property Organization, in which 156 WIPO member states, six intergovernmental, and six non-governmental organizations participated. Forty-eight countries signed the treaty on 26 June, followed by 19 other countries in 2012 and 2013. The treaty entered into force on 28 April 2020 following the receipt of the 30th ratification or accession and as of August 2021 has 42 contracting parties.
The copyright law of Panama is primarily based on 1994 legislation, known as Law 15. The history of Panamanian intellectual property legislation dates to the 19th century. Only recently has copyright in Panama became seriously enforced, with past international criticism focusing on insufficient effort to enforce intellectual property laws. A new 2012 law has attracted concerns in the opposite direction, with many criticising it for being too draconian.
The Intellectual Property Agency of Armenia (AIPA) is the patent office of Armenia. The agency works under the supervision of the Ministry of Economy of Armenia and is tasked with granting patent and IP address protections, trademarks, and copyrights for objects of industrial property, inventions and usage patterns, industrial design, and commercial and service marks, among others.
