infoJustice

In regard to the announcement from USTR that Mexico would be invited to join the TPP Negotiations, Sean Flynn, Associate Director of American University Washington College of Law Program on Information Justice and Intellectual Property released the following statement:

“Bringing Mexico into the TPP negotiation will make the negotiation of the intellectual property chapter that much harder. Mexico already participated with the United States in the negotiation and signing of the controversial Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA). But ACTA will never go into force in Mexico; the Mexican Senate rejected that agreement in an overwhelming vote while it was being negotiated and there is no indication that it will be asked to change its vote now that ACTA is finished. The U.S. position in TPP is asking for disciplines on domestic intellectual property laws far in excess of ACTA, which have virtually no chance of being accepted in that Mexico. With NAFTA already in place, the U.S. does not have any market access benefits to offer Mexico in exchange for accepting the onerous U.S. intellectual property demands – a similar context that is driving the resistance of Chile, Australia, Peru and Singapore to the U.S. proposals.”

“It can be noted further that similar barriers would be faced in pushing the U.S. demands for an intellectual property chapter on Canada. Canada is currently amending its copyright law in ways directly at odds with the U.S. demands for a TPP intellectual property chapter – including by implementing a ‘notice and notice’ brand of internet copyright enforcement that does not rely on private take downs of allegedly infringing content.”