WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION  TN/IP/W/10/Rev.4 
31 March 2011  
 
(11-1605) 
Council for Trade-Related Aspects of 
Intellectual Property Rights Special Session Original:   English 
 
  
PROPOSED DRAFT TRIPS COUNCIL DECISION ON THE ESTABLISHMENT OF A 
MULTILATERAL SYSTEM OF NOTIFICATION AND REGISTRATION OF 
GEOGRAPHICAL INDICATIONS FOR WINES AND SPIRITS 
 
Submission by Argentina, Australia, Canada, Ch ile, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, 
 
El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Israel, Jap an, Korea, Mexico, New Zealand, Nicaragua,  
Paraguay, the Separate Customs Territory  of Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen and Matsu,  
South Africa and the United States  
 
Revision  
   The following submission, dated 9 March 2005, fro m the Delegations of Argentina, Australia, 
Canada, Chile, Ecuador, Mexico, Ne w Zealand and the United States was circulated as an advance 
copy to the Special Session of the Council for TR IPS at its meeting of 11 March 2005.  At that 
meeting, the Delegations of the Dominican Re public, El Salvador, Hond uras and the Separate 
Customs Territory of Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen and Matsu requested that their names be added as 
co-sponsors.  Subsequently, the Delegations of Co sta Rica, Guatemala, Japan , Korea, Nicaragua and 
Paraguay requested that their names be added as co-sponsors.  On 14 July 2008 the co-sponsors 
requested that the document be issued as a revi sion in order to reflect subsequently-added 
co-sponsors.  On 23 July 2008, South Africa requested  that it be added as co-sponsor of the proposal.  
On 3 March 2011, the co-sponsors requested the docume nt be issued as a revision in order to reflect 
new preamble text on Special & Differential Tr eatment (S&DT), additional provisions related to 
S&DT, and to use a formatting similar to that uti lised in the draft consolidated negotiating text 
circulated at the twenty-eighth session of the TRIPS Council in Special Session.  It should be 
understood that revision 3 is intended to reflect ch anges made by Joint Proposal proponents during the 
informal drafting group process.  On 29 March 2011, Israel requested that it be added as a co-sponsor 
of the Joint Proposal.  The Joint Proposal co-s ponsors remain committed to the negotiating process 
established by the Chair and the overall e ffort to produce a single consensus text. 
 
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Further to the Joint Proposal (TN/IP/W/5, 23 October 2002) and the Question and Answer 
Communication on the Joint Proposal (TN/IP/W/9, 13 April 2004), the following draft TRIPS Council 
Decision sets out in draft legal form a means by which WTO Members could implement the mandate 
from TRIPS Article 23.4 and Paragraph 18 of the Doha Mi nisterial Declaration.  In that light, this text 
proposes the establishment of a multilateral system of  notification and registration of geographical 
indications for wines and spirits that facilitates the protection of wines and spirits GIs through a system that is voluntary, that preserves the existi ng balance of rights and obligations in the TRIPS 
Agreement, that preserves the territoriality of inte llectual property rights for geographical indications, 
and that allows WTO Members to continue to de termine for themselves the appropriate method of 
implementing the provisions of the TRIPS Agreement within their  own legal system and practice. TN/IP/W/10/Rev.4 
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Proposed Draft TRIPS Council Decision on the Establishment of a 
Multilateral System of Notification and Registration of 
Geographical Indications for Wines and Spirits 
 
 
 The Council for Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights ("the Council for 
TRIPS") 
 
 Having regard to paragraph 4 of Article 23 of the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of 
Intellectual Property Rights ("TRIPS Agreement"), wh ich provides that "in order to facilitate the 
protection of geographical indications for wines, negotiations shall be undertaken in the Council for 
TRIPS concerning the establishment of a multilateral system of notification and registration of geographical indications for wines eligible for pr otection in those Members participating in the 
system"; 
 
 Having regard  to paragraph 18 of the Doha Minist erial Declaration (WT/MIN(01)/DEC/1), 
which states that "with a view to completing th e work started in the Council for Trade-Related 
Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (Council fo r TRIPS) on the implementation of Article 23.4, 
we [Ministers] agree to negotiate the establishm ent of a multilateral system of notification and 
registration of geographical indications for wines and spirits;  
 
 Noting  that the purpose of the multilateral system of notification and registration of 
geographical indications for wines and spirits shall be to facilitate the protection of these geographical 
indications, consistent with Part II,  Section 3 of the TRIPS Agreement; 
 
 Noting  that the system shall not confer any rights with respect to the geographical indications 
registered in the system;    Noting  that the system shall not prejudice any rights or obligations of a Member under the 
TRIPS Agreement;  
 Recognizing that, as provided for in paragraph 1 of Article 1 of the TRIPS Agreement, each 
Member is free to determine the appropriate method of implementing the provisions of that 
Agreement within its own legal system and practi ce, and that systems for protecting geographical 
indications include:  trademark law, including collective, guarantee or certification marks, specific protection systems for geographical indications, and other relevant laws such as those pertaining to 
unfair competition and consumer protection. 
  Recognizing  the role of provisions for special and differential treatment in the WTO 
Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights, and that any assistance that may 
be provided with regard to the implementation of the multilateral system of notification and 
registration of geographical indications for wines and spirits should be appropriately targeted to 
achieve the objective of that system. 
 
 Decides as follows: 
 
X.1 Establishment of the System 
 A multilateral system for the notification and registration of geographical indications for 
wines and spirits ("the System") is hereby established.   TN/IP/W/10/Rev.4 
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  A. Participation 
A.1 In accordance with paragraph 4 of Article 23 of the TRIPS Agreement, participation in the 
System established in this Decision is strictly  voluntary, and no Member shall be required to 
participate. 
 
A.2 In order to participate in the System, a Memb er shall make a written notification to the WTO 
Secretariat of its intention to participate.  
B. Notification  
B.1 Each Participating Member may notify to th e WTO any geographical indication that identifies 
a wine or a spirit originating in that Member's territory. 
 B.2 The notification shall:  
(a) identify the notifying Member; 
 
(b) identify the geographical indication as it appears on wine or spirit goods in the 
territory of the notifying Member; 
 
(c) identify the territory, region or locality of the notifying Member from which the wine 
or spirit bearing the notified geographical indication is identified as originating; 
 
(d) when the geographical indication is in char acters other than Latin characters, include, 
for information purposes only, a trans literation into Latin characters of the 
geographical indication using the phonetics of  the language in which the notification 
is made ("transliteration");  and 
 
(e) specify whether the indication refers to a wine or spirit. 
 B.3 The notification may also include:   
(a)  information concerning the date on wh ich the geographical indication received 
protection in the territory of the notifyi ng Member and the date, if any, on which 
protection will expire;  and  
 
(b)  information concerning how the notified geographical indication is protected in the 
territory of the notifying Member. 
 
B.4 The notifications of each geographical indica tion shall be made on the basis of a standard 
form to be adopted by the TRIPS Council prio r to the entry into operation of the System. 
 
C. Registration on the Database 
C.1 The WTO Secretariat shall, following receipt of the notification, register the notified 
geographical indication on the Database of Geogra phical Indications for Wines and Spirits ("the 
Database").  C.2 The registration of a geographical indication on the Database shall consist of the recording of 
the information provided under paragraph B.2. 
 TN/IP/W/10/Rev.4 
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  C.3 The Database shall be searchable on-line, free of charge, accessible to all WTO Members and 
the public, and provide a means to access the original notifications. 
 C.4 With the exception of each notified geographical indication itself and, as applicable, its transliteration, the Database shall be available in all three WTO languages. 
 
C.5 Each Participating Member may, at any time,  submit to the WTO amended notifications of 
geographical indications. The provisions of paragr aphs concerning "Notifi cations" (B1 and B2) and 
"Registration on the Database" (C1 to C4) a bove shall apply to amended notifications. 
 
C.6 Each Participating Member may, at any time, withdraw a notification it has made earlier of a 
geographical indication.   Any withdrawal shall be notified to the WTO Secretariat in writing. 
 C.7 The previously-registered geographical indica tion for which the notification of withdrawal 
was made shall thereupon be removed from the Database. 
 
D. Consequences of Registration 
D.1 Each Participating Member commits to ensure  that its procedures include the provision to 
consult the Database when making decisions regardi ng registration or protec tion of trademarks and 
geographical indications for wines and sp irits in accordance with its domestic law.  
 
D.2 Members who choose not to participate are en couraged, but are not obliged, to consult the 
Database in making decisions under their domestic  law involving registration or protection of 
trademarks and geographical indications for wines and spirits.  
E Special and Differential Treatment  
 
Transitional time-periods 
 
E.1 Participating developing country Members sha ll not be required to a pply paragraph D above 
of  the provisions of the multilateral system of notif ication and registration of  geographical indications 
for wines and spirits ("the System"), for a pe riod of [X] years following the date of the 
commencement of its participation in accordance wi th the written notification to the WTO Secretariat 
of its intention to participate pursuant to paragraph A.2 above.  
 E.2 In the case of a participating least-develope d country LDC member this  period is established 
at [X + Y] years following the date of the comme ncement of its participation in accordance with the 
written notification to the WTO Secretariat of its in tention to participate pursuant to paragraph A.2 
above.  E.3. A participating LDC Member may request before the end of the period referred to in 
paragraph E.2, an extension of that period. In  that case, the Council for TRIPS shall, upon duly 
motivated request by a participating LDC Member, accord extensions of this period.  
 
Technical Assistance 
 
E.4. With a view to assisting interested developi ng country Members, in particular LDC Members, 
in implementing the provisions of the System, participating developed country Members, shall 
provide, on request and on mutually agreed term s and conditions, financ ial and/or technical 
assistance. Such assistance may also be provided during the transitional time period referred to in 
paragraphs E.1 to E.3 above.    TN/IP/W/10/Rev.4 
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  E.5 The financial and/or technical assistance re garding the implementation of the provisions of 
the System may include, inter alia, institutional cap acity building programmes to assist Members in 
conducting the notification activities described in pa ragraph B above, and in consulting the Database, 
as provided in paragraph D above.  The assistance ma y entail activities such as, inter alia, training of 
personnel, cooperation based on best  practices and experiences, and advice regarding the development 
of appropriate administrative procedures. 
 
F.  Termination of Participation 
F.1 A Member may also terminate, at any time, its  participation in the System.  Any termination 
shall be notified to the WTO Secretariat in writing.  Once a Member has terminated its participation in 
the System, all geographical indications previously  notified by that Member shall be removed from 
the Database. 
 
G. Contact point 
G.1 Each Participating Member shall notify to the WTO a contact point, from which further 
information on geographical indications notified by that Member can be obtained.  The WTO 
Secretariat shall publish the contact points in the Database.  
H. Date of entry into operation 
 
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