. /.   WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION  IP/C/W/485 
2 November 2006 
 
 (06-5254) 
Council for Trade-Related Aspects 
of Intellectual Property Rights Original:  English 
 
 
 
ENFORCEMENT OF INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS 
 
Joint Communication from the European Communities, Japan,   
Switzerland and the United States  
 
  The following communication, dated 23 October 2006, is being circulated at the request of the delegations of the European Communities, Ja pan, Switzerland and the United States.  It was 
circulated as an advance copy for the Council's October 2006 meeting. 
 
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 1. The co-sponsors of this Joint Communicati on recall the importance of effective IPR 
enforcement for developing and de veloped country economies, in pa rticular in terms of innovation 
and investment. 
2. It is clear that global counterfeiting and piracy activity is expanding rapidly.  This activity is 
increasingly sophisticated, in part due to the devel opment and wider availability of new technologies.  
All economies are facing the problems caused by c ounterfeiting and piracy, as well as the challenges 
of measuring these problems.  This activity has harmfu l effects on society as a whole:  it puts at risk 
public health and safety, threatens legitimate comme rce, and entails loss of jobs and government tax 
revenues.  This activity is also often linked to organized crime and other types of crimes. 
3. Counterfeiting and piracy activity represents a c onsiderable share of the global economy.  It 
concerns most WTO Members, albeit at different levels.  Given the international dimension of the 
issue, there is a need for a co-ordin ated action at both national and intern ational levels.  In this respect, 
the co-sponsors take note of the Statement made by the G8 on 16 July 2006 on Combating IPR Piracy 
and Counterfeiting. 
4. The TRIPS Council is an appropriate foru m to examine and assist Members in the 
implementation of enforcement provisions of the TR IPS Agreement.  The work of the TRIPS Council 
in this regard should complement Members' effort s to use other cooperative mechanisms to address 
IPR enforcement.   
5. The co-sponsors acknowledge that Members are fre e to determine the appropriate method of 
implementing enforcement provisions while ensuring e ffective IP enforcement.  However, ultimately, 
such implementation must ensure adequate achieve ment of the objectives of the TRIPS Agreement. 
6. The co-sponsors are convinced that the excha nge of experiences and best practices in the 
TRIPS Council involving all Members would enab le all Members to better understand where the 
problems are, how they can be addressed and what the TRIPS Council can do. IP/C/W/485 
Page 2  
 
  7. The co-sponsors of this communication: 
 - Invite other Members to engage in a constructive discussion of how to implement the 
enforcement provisions of TRIPS in a more effective manner. 
  - Invite other Members to engage in a constructive discussion of accompanying 
measures which could enhance the effectiveness of national implementing legislation 
and enforcement efforts, such as for exam ple promoting interagency co-operation, 
fostering a higher public awareness, an d reinforcing institutional frameworks. 
  - Ask the Secretariat to prepare a synopsis of Members' contributions to the Checklist 
of Issues on Enforcement that would serve as a basis for the above-mentioned 
discussion. 
  - Stand ready, in cooperation with recipients  of technical assistance and with relevant 
international organizations, to better focus the technical assistance they provide in 
favour of developing countries in order to facilitate the implementation of 
enforcement provisions. 
 
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