WT/DS567/1  
IP/D/40  
 
4 October 2018  
(18-6130) Page: 1/3 
  Original: English  
 
SAUDI ARABIA – MEASU RES CONCERNING THE P ROTECTION OF INTELLE CTUAL 
PROPERTY RIGHTS  
REQUEST FOR CONSULTA TIONS BY QATAR  
The following communication, dated 1 October 2018 , from the delegation of Qatar  to the delegation 
of the Kingdom of  Saudi Arabia , is circulated to the Dispute Settlement Body in accordance with 
Article  4.4 of the DSU.  
 
_______________  
 
 
1. My authorities have instructed me to request the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia ( "Saudi Arabia ") to 
enter into consultations concerning Saudi Arabia 's failure to provide adequate protection of 
intellectual property rights, in particular with respect to intellectual property rights held (or applied 
for) by entities based in the State of Qatar ( "Qatar "). 
2. The request is made pursuant to Article 4 of the Unders tanding on Rules and Procedures 
Governing the Settlement of Disputes ("DSU") and Article 64.1 of the Agreement on Trade -Related 
Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights ("TRIPS Agreement "). 
3. This request identifies the measures at issue in Section A, and ind icates the legal bases for 
Qatar 's complaint in Section B.  
A. Measures at issue  
4. The measures at issue in this request include all written and unwritten, published and 
unpublished, measures (including omissions) that have resulted in Saudi Arabia 's failure to protect 
intellectual property rights, including with respect to intellectual property rights held (or applied for) 
by Qatari entities or Qatari individuals. The measures, individually and collectively, affect trade -
related aspects of intellectual property rights.   
5. In June 2017, Saudi Arabia imposed a scheme of diplomatic, political, and economic measures 
against Qatar. Such measures impacted, inter alia , the ability of Qatari nationals to protect 
intellectual property rights in Saudi Arabia.   
6. The multiple Qatari companies severely impacted by these measures include beIN Media 
Group LLC and affiliates ( "beIN"). Saudi Arabia has prohibited beIN from broadcasting its content in 
Saudi Arabia.   
7. Among Saudi Arabia 's measures is a 19 June 2017 Circul ar, issued by the Saudi Ministry of 
Culture and Information together with the General Commission of Audio and Visual Media. This 
Circular states that distribution of beIN media content and charging of related fees in Saudi Arabia 
"shall result in the impos ition of penalties and fines and the loss of the legal right to protect any 
related intellectual property rights .... ". 
8. Soon thereafter, in early August 2017, a sophisticated broadcast pirate named "beoutQ " 
emerged, taking beIN 's copyrighted media content (along with beIN 's trademarks) without 
authorization, and making it accessible on beoutQ platforms, via the Internet and satellite 
broadcasting.  beoutQ 's unauthorized satellite broadcasts are transmitted via satellites of the Saudi -
based Arab Satellite Co mmunications Organization ( "Arabsat ") to beoutQ 's subscribers. To enable WT/DS567/1 • IP/D/40  
 
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  receipt of the satellite broadcasts, beoutQ (an entity based in Saudi Arabia) has sold set -top decoder 
boxes throughout Saudi Arabia. As a result, beoutQ 's unauthorized Internet and s atellite 
broadcasting of beIN 's content has been available on a commercial scale.  
9. Despite extensive evidence of involvement of Saudi nationals, entities and facilities in the 
distribution of beoutQ throughout Saudi Arabia (and beyond), the Saudi authoritie s have refused to 
take any effective action against beoutQ. Instead, the Government of Saudi Arabia (including both 
the central and municipal governments) has supported beoutQ, including by denouncing beIN 's 
requests to investigate and prevent the pirate 's unauthorized broadcasts, and by promoting public 
gatherings with screenings of beoutQ 's unauthorized broadcasts.  
10. The Saudi authorities ' support of beoutQ has also taken the form of restrictions on, or other 
acts or omission that frustrate, beIN 's ability to pursue civil actions before the Saudi courts.  Through 
a variety of means, including by preventing independent Saudi legal counsel from representing beIN 
in Saudi courts, the Saudi authorities have prevented beIN from accessing enforcement procedures 
against infringement of it s intellectual property rights.  
11. The copyrighted materials captured by beoutQ 's unauthorized broadcasts encompass not only 
works created by beIN itself, but also works created by content providers from around the world, 
including the  United States, the European Union and its Member States, and Switzerland, which have 
provided exclusive licenses to beIN for the Saudi Arabian market.  
B. Legal bases of the complaint  
12. Qatar is concerned that the measures at issue taken by and/or attributable to Saudi Arabia, 
as described in Section A of this request and further detailed below, are inconsistent with Saudi 
Arabia 's obligations under the TRIPS Agreement . 
13. Specifically, certain measures appear to violate:  
(a) Article 3.1 of the TRIPS Agreement , because by creating obstacles for Qatari nationals 
(including but not limited to beIN), which are not faced by Saudi nationals, that hinder 
or block their ability to protect1 their intellectual property rights (including copyrights, 
broadcasting rights, trademarks and other forms of intellectual property) in the 
territory of Saudi Arabia, Saudi Arabia has failed to accord to Qatari nationals 
treatment no less favourable than that accorded to Saudi Arabia 's own nationals with 
regard to the protection of in tellectual property.  
(b) Article 4 of the TRIPS Agreement,  because by creating obstacles for Qatari nationals 
(including but not limited to beIN), which are not faced by nationals of other countries, 
that hinder or block their ability to protect their intellec tual property rights (including 
copyrights, broadcasting rights, trademarks and other forms of intellectual property) 
in the territory of Saudi Arabia, Saudi Arabia has failed to accord, immediately and 
unconditionally, to Qatari nationals the advantages, favours, privileges and 
immunities granted by Saudi Arabia to the nationals of other countries with regard to 
the protection of intellectual property.  
(c) Article 9 of the TRIPS Agreement , because Saudi Arabia has failed to provide authors 
of works (including pre-recorded and live programming) with the exclusive rights of 
authorizing, inter alia , the reproduction, broadcasting, rebroadcasting, public 
performances or public recitation of their works, as required by the Berne Convention 
for the Protection of Lite rary and Artistic Works (1971) ( "Berne Convention "), as 
incorporated into the TRIPS Agreement, including Articles 9, 11, 11 bis and 11 ter of 
the Berne Convention.  
                                                
1 For greater clarity, the terms "protect " and "protection " have the meaning provided in footnote 3 of the 
TRIPS Agreement, and encompass "matters affecting the availability, acquisition,  scope, maintenance and 
enforcement of intellectual property rights as well as those matters affecting the use of intellectual property 
rights specifically addressed in this Agreement ". WT/DS567/1 • IP/D/40  
 
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  (d) Article 14.3 of the TRIPS Agreement , because Saudi Arabia has failed to provide 
broadcasting organizations (and the owners of copyright in the subject matter of the 
broadcasts) with the right to prohibit unauthorised fixation, reproduction of fixation, 
and rebroadcasting by wireless means of broadcasts.  
(e) Article 16.1 of the TRIPS Agreement , because  Saudi Arabia has failed to provide the 
owners of registered trademarks (including, in particular, Qatari owners) with the 
exclusive right to prevent all third parties not having the owner 's consent from using, 
in the course of trade, identical or similar signs for goods or services which are 
identical or similar to those in respect of which the trademark is registered, where 
such use would result in a likelihood of confusion.  
(f) Article 41.1 of the TRIPS Agreement , because by restricting intellectual property  right 
holders (including Qatari rights holders) from pursuing civil actions before Saudi courts 
(or otherwise frustrating their ability to do so), Saudi Arabia has failed to ensure that 
enforcement procedures against infringement of their intellectual pro perty are 
available so as to permit effective action against such acts of infringement, including 
expeditious remedies to prevent infringements and remedies which constitute a 
deterrent to further infringement.  
(g) Article 42 of the TRIPS Agreement , because, by preventing intellectual property right 
holders (including Qatari rights holders) from bringing enforcement procedures 
against infringement of their intellectual property (or otherwise frustrating their ability 
to do so), Saudi Arabia has failed to make available to right holders civil judicial 
procedures concerning the enforcement of intellectual property rights covered by the 
TRIPS Agreement.  
(h) Article 61 of the TRIPS Agreement , because – to the extent the infringement involves 
Qatari -held intellectual pr operty rights – Saudi Arabia has failed to provide for criminal 
procedures and penalties to be applied in cases of wilful trademark counterfeiting or 
copyright piracy on a commercial scale.  
*****  
14. This request for consultations also concerns any modificatio n, replacement or amendment to 
the measures identified above, and any closely connected, subsequent measures.  
15. Qatar reserves its rights to raise additional matters during the course of these consultations 
and in any future  request for panel proceedings.  
16. Qatar looks forward to receiving a reply from Saudi Arabia to this request within 10 days after 
receipt of this request, as contemplated by Article 4.3 of the DSU, and to fixing a mutually acceptable 
date for consultations.  
__________