New Commission’s communication on enhancing the enforcement of intellectual property rights in the internal market
Posted by Emil A. Georgiev on 13 September, 2009
The European Commission has published a new communication (COM 2009/467) to the Council, the Parliament and the Economic and Social Committee. In this communication the Commission acknowledges that the Union is the home of some very large and successful businesses in the world, who consider IPR to be amongst their most precious commercial possessions. The Commission further acknowledges that counterfeiting and piracy have a dramatic and damaging effect on business in Europe, wherefore certain measures (eg Enforcement Directive, Customs Regulation) to better combat such counterfeiting and piracy were undertaken in the past.
- supporting enforcement through an EU Counterfeiting and Piracy Observatory;
- fostering administrative cooperation throughout the Internal Market;
- facilitating voluntary arrangements between stakeholders.
The Commission suggests that the Observatory serve as the central resource for gathering, monitoring and reporting information and data related to all IPR infringements.
The Commission views s greater administrative cooperation in the field of IPR enforcement in the wider context of a partnership between the Commission and the Member States in implementing a borderless internal market.
Concerning its last point, arrangements between stakeholders, the Commission stresses that such solutions have to be compliant with the existing legal framework and should neither restrict in any way the fundamental rights of EU citizens, such as the freedom of expression and information, the right to privacy and the protection of personal data.
