The US has again expressed its displeasure over Taiwan's piracy of intellectual property (IP) in a key annual report that could signal tougher US action against Taiwan next month which may lead to eventual trade sanctions.
The US Trade Representative's (USTR) office sharply criticized Taiwan for its lack of progress on fighting piracy, in its latest annual report on trade barriers worldwide. The report comes a week after US-Taiwan negotiations in Taipei which failed to resolve the main issues dividing Taipei and Washington.
Despite some progress in curbing piracy of CDs, videotapes, DVDs and other forms of intellectual property, "significant deficiencies remain with respect to Taiwan's IP protection," according to the latest National Trade Estimate Report on Foreign Trade Barriers, issued by the USTR.
"US industries remain concerned that the [Taiwanese] judicial system is not effectively addressing IP cases. Generally, IP holders find that the procedures themselves act as barriers and penalties are inadequate."
Last week's talks, which brought senior USTR officials to Taipei for discussions with the Board of Foreign Trade, did not accomplish much, according to USTR officials.
"We're hopeful for progress, but the issues have not all been resolved to our satisfaction, so there are going to be some continuing discussions with them on IPR [intellectual property rights]," a USTR official told reporters in Washington Friday, on the condition of anonymity.
"We do have continuing concerns with IPR protection in Taiwan," the official said. "They are growing concerns because we haven't seen effective measures to improve enforcement, in particular, of copyrights.
"We see a lot of piracy there of optical media. They have overcapacity, and they have not taken measures similar to those places like Hong Kong and others have done to effectively address the situation," the official said.
The report makes special reference to the Legislative Yuan's consideration of an "optical media law" to deal with CDs, DVDs, and related products, which the US has urged the legislature to approve. "It is critical that Taiwan adopt a legal requirement to license the import and use of optical media manufacturing machinery, as Taiwan is one of the world's largest producers of these products," the US report says.
In February, the government pledged to pass such a law. The Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office (TECRO) in Washington has reportedly told Taipei that if such a law is not passed by the end of April, the USTR will place Taiwan on its "priority watch list" under a US law governing IP piracy that could result in broad retaliatory trade sanctions against Taiwan if piracy is not curbed to Washington's satisfaction.
Currently, Taiwan is on the "watch list" under the law, the so-called Special 301, having been placed there in August 1998. The new determinations are slated to be announced on or about April 30, when the USTR plans to release its annual Special 301 report.
A new issue the USTR raised this year deals with Taiwan's patent law, which fails to give full protection to patents filed before 1994. While current patents offer 20-year protection, those issued before 1994 provide only 15 to 18 years of protection, which is not in compliance with a key WTO intellectual property agreement.
The report also raises issues about Taiwan's government procurement rules, citing several ways in which they allegedly discriminate against US construction and other firms.
It also complains about corruption and graft in Taiwan which, it says, "continue to have a negative impact on Taiwan's business environment."
While the Chen Shui-bian (
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