hr: Money

China, Russia plus seven other nations were accused by the United States of failing to protect American interests as regards widespread piracy of software, movies and other copyrighted material.

These nine countries, which further include Argentina, Chile, India, Israel, Pakistan, Thailand and Venezuela, were placed on a priority watchlist Friday, subjecting them to extra scrutiny. This could even lead to economic sanctions should the administration file complaints before the World Trade Organization.
 
Thirty-one other countries were named to a lower-level watch list.

Other countries like Egypt, Lebanon, Turkey and Ukraine were taken off the list after having shown improvements in their efforts in protecting US intellectual property rights.

Piracy is “one of the central challenges facing the global economy,” said US Trade representative Susan Schwab.

“Pirates and counterfeiters don’t just steal ideas, they steal jobs and too often they threaten our health and safety,” Trade Representative Schwab added.

Photo Credit: matsuyuki

The above statement reflects growing concern over counterfeited pharmaceuticals and other products that threaten the health and safety of consumers worldwide.

Both China and Russia have become more vigilant in protecting US intellectual property rights over the past year; however certain issues remain, said Stan McCoy, assistant U.S. trade representative for intellectual property.

The United States has a pending WTO case against China. On the other hand, the same issue has served as roadblock to Russia’s bid to become a member of the WTO.

Piracy remained the software industry’s biggest trade barrier, costing nearly $40 billion a year, said Robert Holleyman, president of the Business Software Alliance.