The General Assembly of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) meets in Geneva from 26 September until 5 October 2005 to examine several key issues. 

Convene a Diplomatic Conference to Draft "Special Interest" Broadcasting Treaty?

A controversial "special interest" Broadcasting Treaty that would grant new rights to broadcasting companies and threatens to regulate Internet transmissions of audio-visual works is on the General Assembly's agenda.  WIPO itself, and the US are the main backers of the Broadcasting Treaty, while artists and other intellectual property rights holders are aligned with public-interest groups against the treaty.

In November 2004 at the last meeting of the WIPO Standing Committee on Copyright and Related Rights, the body that is handling the proposed Broadcasting Treaty, WIPO's Secretariat tried to impose the decision on the committee to convene a Diplomatic Conference to begin formal drafting of the Broadcasting Treaty.  But a number of states including India, Brazil, Argentina, and others strongly objected to convening a Diplomatic Conference when so many states are not ready to endorse the idea of a new Broadcasting Treaty.  Because WIPO could not move forward with its plan to immediately hold a Diplomatic Conference due to the objections of several countries, WIPO instead held a series of secretive "Regional Consultations", in a strategy of "divide and conquer" any opposition to a Diplomatic Conference on the Broadcasting Treaty. 

WIPO has held 6 regional consultations since November 2004 to pressure member states into supporting a Diplomatic Conference on the Broadcasting Treaty.  These regional consultations were wrought with irregular procedures designed to rig the outcome, including only some countries being invited, or delegates invited in their "personal" capacities, rather than through official channels.  The US was allowed to participate at the African regional meeting.  WIPO treated some delegates with expensive trips to posh resorts in order to "educate" them on the benefits of the Broadcasting Treaty.  WIPO-accredited civil society groups, most of whom oppose the convening of a Diplomatic Conference, were not allowed to attend the regional meetings.  Due to the many irregularities and absence of a democratic process, the results of WIPO's regional meetings lack any real legitimacy for policy making.

IP Justice published a webpage with analysis on the proposed WIPO Broadcasting Treaty.  One of most alarming provisions in the proposed Broadcasting Treaty is the US' proposal to include all Internet transmissions of audio-video content within its regulation.  The US is the only country pressing for Internet transmissions (or Webcasting) to be regulated by the treaty.  Many of the provisions in the proposed Broadcasting Treaty currently exist no where in any country's national law, such as the Webcasting provisions, and the controversial measures to give broadcasting companies a new right to outlaw bypassing electronic locks on information that's in the public domain.

A group of NGOs' (including IP Justice) signed on to a letter to the US Congress calling for public comment on the Webcasting provisions in the Broadcasting Treaty and asking for the US to block support for the Diplomatic Conference.  The letter is open for additional signatures until 11 October 2005 and US citizens are strongly encouraged to sign-on to protect their liberty.

WIPO has announced that the Standing Committee on Copyrights and Related Rights will consider the Broadcasting Treaty again on 21-22 November 2005 in Geneva.

Continue Work of Development Agenda to Reform WIPO?

The General Assembly will also decide whether or not to continue the Development Agenda, a measure adopted by last year's General Assembly to reform WIPO's structural bias that is currently in favor of large IP holders in the US and generally against the global public interest.  The Development Agenda was proposed by a 14-country coalition of developing countries, called the "Friends of Development" and led by Brazil and Argentina.  The Friends of Development submitted a proposal for specific reforms at WIPO in the Fall of 2004.  From April - July 2005 WIPO held three meetings intended to discuss how this reform should take shape.  Poor leadership within WIPO and pressure from the US and EU led to the first two meetings being largely a waste of time, with virtually no discussion of specific proposals for substantive reform within WIPO. 

At the final meeting in July 2005, the US and Japan refused to agree with every other country to at least continue the Development Agenda discussion through additional inter-sessional meetings.  Because WIPO works under a "consensus" model, an action can only be taken if every country agrees.  Since the US and Japan refused to permit the inter-sessional discussions on the Development Agenda to continue, the General Assembly must now decide how to proceed on the Development Agenda (if at all).  Basically, the Development Agenda at WIPO is back to square one with no progress in one year's time.  If the US and the EU have their way, the Development Agenda will be relegated to a defunct WIPO committee (PCIPD) with no oversight, accountability, or power to reform WIPO's anti-consumer bias.

During the WIPO General Assembly's informal consultations in the evening on 29 September 2005, every country except for the United Stated agreed that the Development Agenda discussions should continue in inter-sessional meetings.  The Chairman produced the following text, which only the United Stated objected to:
Because the United States refused to permit the inter-sessional discussions on a Development Agenda to continue, and WIPO works on a consensus model for taking decisions, it is unclear what the next steps will be.  Some have said a new text will be produced for consideration by the General Assembly before the meeting ends 5 October 2005.

IP Justice has published a webpage with more detailed information on the WIPO Development Agenda.  In July 2005, 138 public-interest Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) from all corners of the globe signed a statement in support of the Friends of Development proposal for a Development Agenda at WIPO.

Other Agenda Issues for WIPO General Assembly

Another important topic on the agenda of the 2005 WIPO General Assembly is a decision on the work program for the Standing Committee on Patents.  Here again, the First and Third World clash on what the work program for the patent committee should be.  Wealthy countries want to "standardize" patent laws at stringent levels, while developing countries press for more flexibilities, protection against anti-competitive practices, and transfer of technology in patent laws.

Substantive decisions will also be taken regarding the work of the WIPO Committee on Intellectual Property and Genetic Resources, Traditional Knowledge and Folklore, a Diplomatic Conference for a Revised Trademark Law Treaty, audio-visual performances, and Internet domain names.