International Copyright Issues
Last Update: 23-Aug-2006 10:54
Treaties to which the U. S. is a signatory affect our copyright laws and policies in various ways. We have listed several treaties or conventions currently under discussion to which the U.S. potentially may be a party.
This Page:
An Introduction to International Copyright Law
Other Pages:
- The Hague Convention and Copyright
- Free Trade Area of the Americas Agreement (FTAA)
- Bi-Lateral Free Trade Agreements
- UNESCO Convention On Cultural Diversity
- World Trade Organization (WTO) and the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS)
- The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO)
An Introduction to International Copyright Law
- What is copyright law?
- Why is international copyright law different?
- Who makes international copyright law?
- Why does international law interest libraries?
- How is ALA involved?
- Who else is involved?
- What happens next?
What is copyright law?
Copyright, whose concepts were established in the Constitution, is a unique
area of the law that is concerned with both protecting an author's creative
efforts as they are fixed into expressions of all forms and limiting this protection
so that the creativity can be enjoyed, shared, and built upon by the public.
Maintaining the balance between the needs of both authors and users remains
a core value of U.S. copyright law. In the U.S., the competing interests of
copyright holders and users of the creative material are primarily governed
by a copyright system consisting of the 1976 Copyright Act, amendments or alterations
to it and judicial interpretations of the Act.
Why is international copyright law different?
International copyright law is concerned with the interplay of two or more nations'
copyright systems. Each country has its own method of recognizing, granting
and protecting copyrights. The individual nuances of each of the involved nation's
copyright laws must be considered. For example, some countries do not have intellectual
property laws at all; others grant more protections than the U.S. does. There
is no such thing as an "international copyright" that unconditionally
protects a work throughout the world. (See Related
Links) Instead, the degree of protection a work is entitled to in
a particular country depends on the law of that nation.
International law also involves international agreements (also known as conventions or treaties) that may simplify international copyright law by providing shared conditions for international copyright recognition. However, these agreements may also require the signatories to it to alter their domestic laws in order to comply with the terms of the international agreement. In fact, some of the most controversial pieces of U. S. legislation have passed in order to alter existing copyright law to comply with new international standards. (e.g. The Digital Millennium Copyright Act of 1998)
Who makes international copyright law?
International agreements are generally negotiated and signed by representatives
of international and national organizations from each of the involved nations.
For example, when the U.S. negotiates international agreements, government entities
such as the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR), the Department of
State, the Department of Commerce, and the U.S. Copyright Office may represent
U.S. interests. Generally, international agreements that relate to copyright
law are referred to as international copyright treaties and are formed by international
organizations such as the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). See
Related Links
Why does international law interest libraries?
Recently, numerous international trade agreements and conventions have included
provisions on copyright policies. These provisions concern the library community
because many of them impose onto signatory nations (including the U.S.) obligations
to pass copyright laws that ensure technological protection for copyrighted
works. In many instances, these provisions appear to be more restrictive than
existing U.S. copyright law as well as current international standards.
What is ALA's involvement?
ALA continues to be involved in areas of international law that concern the
library community. ALA has provided the USTR with feedback on drafts of proposed
agreements (such as the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) Agreement). ALA
and the other library associations have also provided supplementary information
to negotiators and members of Congress on the issues of fair use and problems
with current and proposed restrictions on the user-community.
Who else is involved?
International trade agreements address a broad range of topics relating to trade
issues. Accordingly, trade representatives and government organizations of each
of the involved nations as well as members of each industry discussed in the
respective trade agreement participate in negotiations. For example, one agreement
might concern members of the oil, agricultural, health and drug industries as
well as the intellectual property community. Libraries primarily focus on the
copyright provisions within the intellectual property chapters of these agreements;
other groups within the intellectual property community concentrate on international
trademark or patent issues.
What is the expected time frame?
International copyright law is constantly evolving as new technologies develop
and new agreements are formed. International copyright law is also affected
by ever-changing business relationships between trade partners and the dynamics
of individual economies. As technology continues to advance rapidly, we can
expect many agreements, conventions and new international laws concerning intellectual
property to transpire quickly.
See also:
Digital
Millennium Copyright Act of 1998 (DMCA)
Related Links
World Trade OrganizationCopyright Basics, U.S. Copyright Office
World Intellectual Property Organization
Free Trade of the Americas Agreement
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AndeanFTA (PDF File)BahrainFTA (PDF File)
Bahrain Free Trade Agreement Comments
BiLateral
Bi-Lateral Free Trade Agreements
ChileSingapore
US/Chile and US/Singapore Trade Agreements
DRFTA (PDF File)
Dominican Republic FTA
Free Trade Area of the Americas
LCAtoCongressBrdcstTreatyOct05 (PDF File)
PanamaFTA (PDF File)
The Hague Convention and Copyright
UNESCO
UNESCO Draft Convention On Cultural Diversity
UScomsUNESCO1104 (PDF File)
US comments on the UNESCO draft convention on cultural diversity.
USTApros (PDF File)
USTA Process
WIPO
The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO)
WIPO Proposed Treaty on the Protection of Broadcast Organizations
WIPOBrdcstTreatyNGOLtrJune06 (PDF File)
WIPOBroadcstTreatyIndustryLtrJune06 (PDF File)
WTO and the GATS treaty