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Monday, May 08, 2006
Body bans settlement of IP rights violations
To strengthen the country’s drive against fake products, the National Committee on Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) has adopted the “no settlement” policy on cases of IPR violations.
Headed by the Intellectual Property Office (IPO), the inter-agency committee said the measure would give more teeth to the country’s enforcement and prosecution efforts and, at the same time, legally dispose of prospective and pending IP cases.
Piracy
Other members of the committee are the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group, National Bureau of Investigation, Department of Justice, Bureau of Customs, Office of the Court Administrator, National Book Development Board, and Optical Media Board.
IPO director general Adrian S. Cristobal Jr. said the “no settlement” policy aims to discourage piracy cases as well as dispel allegations that the government’s prosecution of IP cases is weak and slow.
He added that the justice department’s anti-piracy unit will pursue the cases based on the evidence at hand even if the complainants present an affidavit of desistance.
“If parties want to settle, they can just do it before the court or during the trial stage,” he said.
Income
Meanwhile, Department of Trade and Industry regional director for Southern Mindanao Merly Cruz said that with this new measure in stopping the proliferation of counterfeit products, the country can generate more income.
“If there would be no fake products anymore that are sold in the domestic market, people or consumers will definitely buy the original ones. In that way, the government would generate additional revenues,” she said.
Cruz added that the inventions, copyright and related rights, trademarks and service marks, geographic indications, industrial designs, patents, layout designs (topographies) of integrated circuits and trade secrets would be protected further.
The committee reported that at least P10 million worth of fake products were seized in January, bringing the government’s total haul to P1.11 billion since January 2005.
Cruz said the policy would further discourage piracy. (Sun.Star Davao/Sunnex)
For Bisaya stories from Cebu. Click here. (May 8, 2006 issue)
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