(C) SPECIAL 301: AMBASSADOR PRESSES FONMIN FOR

C O N F I D E N T I A L KUWAIT 000762

SIPDIS

STATE FOR NEA/ARP
TUNIS FOR NATALIE BROWN

E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/06/2014
TAGS: PREL KIPR KU
SUBJECT: (C) SPECIAL 301: AMBASSADOR PRESSES FONMIN FOR
PROGRESS


Classified By: AMB. RICHARD H. JONES; REASON 1.4 (B, D)


1. (C) Ambassador met March 6 with Foreign Minister Shaykh
Dr. Mohammed al-Sabah (other topics septels). During the
meeting, he informed the Minister that our required annual
report on Special 301 will show Kuwait as the weakest of the
GCC states when it comes to protection of intellectual
property rights (IPR),particularly copyrights and
trademarks. The Minister, citing Microsoft officials,
retorted that he understood the Dubai area was far worse. He
claimed that most of the pirated copies in Kuwait come from
Djebel Ali, "a real pirate's den."


2. (C) The Ambassador replied that the UAE has made rapid
progress in the past few years, so much so that some American
manufacturers are now opening plants there. By contrast, the
Ambassador went on, some Kuwaiti artists had told him they
refused to publish here because piracy is so prevalent. He
noted that he had raised this issue with Minister of
Information Mohammed Abulhassan during his first call on him
last July; while Abulhassan had acknowledged the problem, the
Embassy was forced to conclude it was getting worse:
software piracy in small/medium enterprises exceeds 90
percent; the optical piracy rate is the highest in the
region; the GOK has not replied to our requests for updates
on the Copyright Law and the status of WIPO treaties.
JONES