Almost every country in the world has rules to protect intellectual property rights. Through time, countries’ intellectual property laws have become much more standardized, and most countries now have laws protecting the most common categories of intellectual property rights (patents, trademarks, industrial designs, copyrights, and related rights).
The Paris Convention and the Berne Convention, both of which were adopted in 1883 and 1886, are the two initial foundations of the international intellectual property system. Many other international agreements were then adopted to ensure that the intellectual property system is suitable with current trends and values. The entry into force of the agreements establishing the World Trade Organization in 1995 resulted in stronger harmonized intellectual property laws among WTO members, as all members (146 members as of November 2003) approved the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS Agreement), which sets minimum standards for protecting some of the most major kinds of intellectual property rights.
In recent years, new technologies such as the Internet and biotechnology have continually brought new challenges to this system. While each country approaches these challenges differently, more efforts are being made to guarantee that legal harmonization continues. For example, the WIPO Copyright Treaty and the WIPO Phonograms and Performances Treaty (also known as the “Internet Treaties”) went into force in March and May 2002. These agreements provide a basis to protect creators’ interests in the online environment, allowing musicians, artists, writers, performers, and producers of audio/video recordings to make it easier when using the Internet to create, distribute, and manage the use of their work in the digital world.
However, it is important to remember that the operation of the intellectual property system differs significantly between countries or regions, so it is best to be aware of the related intellectual property legal system or consult an intellectual property lawyer to learn more about the intellectual property system in the country that your company is interested in.
