[WSIS CS-Plenary] Strategic priorities for WGIG

[Federico Heinz]

On Thu, 2005-01-27 at 16:37 -0500, Milton Mueller wrote:
> I think there is a broad consensus that IPR is one of the key issues.
> Those who have appeared to dissent from that consensus

I am not sure that the consensus is in favor of treating "IPR" as a key
issue, not even that there is such a consensus. Your painting the people
who don't think the WGIG should address an "IPR" issue as "dissenting
from the consensus" may be premature.

> have raised two issues, neither of which detracts from the centrality
> of IPR to the WGIG: i) they have objected to the term "intellectual
> property," proposing instead PCT, which is not a serious problem,
> either term could be used; ii) they stated that the WGIG was intended
> to be technical in focus, which is plainly wrong and can be proved so
> simply by reading the WGIG's charter. 

Some people have indeed made points similar to the ones you mention, but
I'm afraid we have failed to communicate them appropriately. Let me try
to explain it anew:

     1. some people feel that "Intellectual Property Rights" as a title
        is confusing, because it encourages to oversimplify, and lump
        together regimes that are wildly different, such as copyrights,
        patents, trademarks and even geographical denominations. What
        these people advocate is not that WGIG discuss these issues
        under the "PCT" banner instead of "IPR", but something much
        deeper: that every time these issues are up for discussion, that
        each of them be treated separately, according to their nature.
        So, *if* WGIG is going to discuss patents, copyrights,
        trademarks and other kinds of state-granted monopolies, it ought
        to do separating clearly each regime: copyrights on one side,
        patents on other, trademarks on yet another. Otherwise, any
        recommendation on "IPR" done by the WGIG are bound to be
        problematic and ambiguous, because it wouldn't be clear to which
        regime it applies.
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