Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
03AMMAN1233
2003-03-03 06:27:00
UNCLASSIFIED
Embassy Amman
Cable title:  

ENGAGING THE GOJ ON IPR COMPLAINT FROM ELECTRONIC

Tags:  KIPR ETRD JO 
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UNCLAS AMMAN 001233 

SIPDIS

STATE PASS USTR FOR NED SAUMS
USDOC FOR 4520/ITA/MAC/ONE/COBERG
STATE PASS USPTO FOR URBAN

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: KIPR ETRD JO
SUBJECT: ENGAGING THE GOJ ON IPR COMPLAINT FROM ELECTRONIC
ARTS

UNCLAS AMMAN 001233

SIPDIS

STATE PASS USTR FOR NED SAUMS
USDOC FOR 4520/ITA/MAC/ONE/COBERG
STATE PASS USPTO FOR URBAN

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: KIPR ETRD JO
SUBJECT: ENGAGING THE GOJ ON IPR COMPLAINT FROM ELECTRONIC
ARTS


1. (u) Summary: We have met over the past weeks with a
number of GOJ officials regarding the complaint Electronic
Arts (EA) raised through the International Intellectual
Property Alliance (IIPA) regarding importation of pirated
software from Syria. The cause of the complaint appears to
have been a communications breakdown within Jordan's piracy
interdiction system, rather than a willful attempt to
circumvent the existing IPR protection regime. Nevertheless,
our interviews have highlighted gaps in the current system
that we hope to begin addressing through increased training
and retooling of the procedural and legislative framework for
IPR protection in Jordan. End summary.

EA'S COMPLAINT


2. (u) On December 11, 2002, the International Intellectual
Property Alliance (IIPA) brought to the attention of USPTO
and the Embassy a claim by Electronic Arts (EA),an
entertainment software developer, that Jordanian customs
authorities had been releasing unauthorized copies of EA
software imported from Syria into the local market without
first seeking the opinion of the National Library (the entity
responsible for copyright enforcement in Jordan). EA
asserted that Jordanian customs had instead relied on
approvals from the Ministry of Information's "Censorship
Office", which has no copyright enforcement authority, as the
basis for releasing the pirated goods.


3. (u) Later that same day, USPTO raised EA's complaint
with the Jordanian delegation to the Joint Economic Committee
meeting in Washington, at which time Jordanian Trade Minister
Salah Bashir assured the USDEL that such a practice was not
in conformity with Jordanian law. He pledged to review the
complaint upon his return to Amman.

FOLLOW UP ACTION


4. (u) Following up, emboffs spoke with EA's local
distributor, Shihab Khalil, to flesh out the details of his
complaint. We then met throughout January with officials in
the Trade Ministry, Customs Directorate, the Amman Customs
House, the Jaber border crossing with Syria, the National
Library, and the Censorship Office. We relayed in each case
the USG's concerns over the possibility that GOJ offices had
sanctioned the importation of unauthorized EA software. GOJ
officials reiterated that such activity would not be in
conformity with Jordanian law. The final decision maker in
this case, the Amman customs house, admitted that such
activity had taken place in the past, but assured us that the
culprit was lack of communication among Customs, the National
Library, and the Censorship Office. He assured us this would
not be a problem in the future.

COMMENT


5. (u) Jordan has an overall good track record with regards
to interdiction of unauthorized A/V material and software.
During our trip to the Syrian border, we visited the
interdiction warehouse and saw the daily "take" of pirated CD
music and games - maybe two dozen copies confiscated from
individual travelers. The biggest hurdle to better
interdiction in the first instance is that CD's are easily
concealed and transported - several hundred can be brought
over in a shoebox by a taxi driver. The GOJ has asked for
additional periodic training for line officers at border
points on IPR issues, which we are examining. Nevertheless,
interdiction will never be air-tight.


6. (u) Jordan is an importer of pirated goods but not a
producer. We are looking at an institutional level for ways
to improve IPR enforcement in the kingdom. In the case of
the EA issue, that means looking at new mechanisms for closer
communication among Customs, the National Library, and the
Censorship Office. It also means looking at current IPR
legislation to find ways to beef up the National Library's
ability to initiate enforcement action. This could mean, for
instance, expanding the scope of its legal authority -
currently, the Library only has authority to confiscate goods
found in shops. It has no authority at border points or even
on the street. We will work with the Library and other
entities in coming months to improve these and other aspects
of Jordan's IPR environment.
GNEHM