IPR UPDATE -- GREECE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 ATHENS 000529 SIPDIS DEPT. FOR EB/IPE SWILSON DEPT. PLS PASS TO USTR JCHOSE-GROVES DOC FOR JBOGER USPTO FOR JURBAN LOC FOR STEPP E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: ECON ETRD GR KIPR SUBJECT: IPR UPDATE -- GREECE REF: A. STATE 24592 ¶B. STATE 30790 SUMMARY -------------- ¶1. (U) Post does not object to Greece's inclusion on the special mention list, but does not believe the IPR problems merit inclusion on any higher level of the Special 301 list. The Greek Government continues its efforts to protect intellectual property and fight piracy. Existing national legislation was bolstered with the ratification by parliament of the WIPO Copyright Treaty (WCT) and WIPO Performances and Phonograms Treaty (WPPT),and Greece is in full compliance with all EU IPR directives. The primary concern, however, is that despite a range of tough laws, courts are too lenient in their treatment of IPR violators. While television piracy is down significantly, piracy of audio-visual works, business software and video games remain problems. END SUMMARY BACKGROUND AND IP CLIMATE -------------- ¶2. (U) Intellectual property problems have long plagued Greece, resulting in its being identified for special mention, although not inclusion, on the Special 301 Watch List this year. Greece was listed as a Special 301 country in 1994, but as a result of the Greek Government's significant progress in protecting intellectual property rights and in fighting piracy, it was removed in 2003. ¶3. (U) In September 2002, the GOG became the first EU country to implement the European Copyright Directive (2001/29/EC),thus harmonizing Greek law with the content of the WIPO Copyright Treaty (WCT) and WIPO Performances and Phonograms Treaty (WPPT). Furthermore, in September 2003, the Greek Parliament ratified the WIPO Treaties (Greek law 3184/2003) thus incorporating the treaties into national law. As pursuant to the Greek Constitution, an international convention ratified by the parliament cannot be modified by future legislation or other government decrees. The government is about to amend Greece,s main IPR protection law (2121/1993) by incorporating EU Directives 48/2004 (Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights) and 84/2001 (Paintings surveillance rights),both due for implementation by early 2006 (4/1/2006 and 1/1/2006 respectively). ¶4. (U) Despite these legislative efforts piracy does continue, however. The music and software industries bear the brunt of IPR violations in Greece, although audiovisual piracy also occurs. Unlicensed sharing of a licensed copy among multiple computers is the largest problem for the software industry. For optical media piracy, Greece is not believed to be the source of the majority of pirated CDs, VCDs, and DVDs being sold in the country, but rather a link in the chain of an increasingly regional copying and distribution network. Hard figures on the levels of piracy in Greece is difficult to obtain, and widely cited figures are often little better than educated guesses. The GoG does not maintain official statistics on piracy. ¶5. (U) According to the Greek office of the Motion Picture Association, EPOE, television piracy has fallen from 70 percent of all broadcasts a decade ago to less than 2 percent today. However, the piracy rate for optical media remains between 10-20 percent of the market. The sight of immigrants selling copied CDs and DVDs on street corners and cafes in most major cities is commonplace. The local representative of the International Federation of Phonographic Industries (IFPI) estimates that 1 in 3 CDs sold in Greece is pirated (the greater part of pirated music product offered for sale seems to be work by Greek pop singers). Although the Business Software Alliance (BSA) has publicly acknowledged the GOG's achievements in combating software piracy in 2002, BSA Hellas notes that Greece still has the highest rate of software piracy in the EU, estimated at 63 percent of the programs sold. Enforcement remains problematic -------------- ¶6. (U) The GoG remains concerned about piracy issues, but as a relatively poor EU nation, Greece does not always have the resources available to effectively police its IPR legislation. Additionally, as a country that does not rely heavily on IPR protection for its own products, it lacks a fully-developed comprehension of the economic impact of piracy. Understanding of IPR issues among the population as a whole is low. Despite legislation that provides for heavy civil and criminal penalties against pirates, enforcement remains spotty. Getting an IPR violator sanctioned, criminally or civilly, in any meaningful way is still time-consuming and difficult. The courts continue to treat IPR violations as nuisance crimes and almost never hand out punishment severe enough to act as a deterrent. ¶7. (U) Greece's Intellectual Property Organization (OPI), which is responsible for drafting Greece's copyright laws, continues to push for more stringent anti-piracy efforts, especially in educating the Greek population about what constitutes piracy and the economic costs that piracy incurs. It hopes to be allowed to introduce short IPR-familiarization courses in middle schools, alongside introductory computer education courses. OPI is also attempting to get IPR courses made mandatory for judges and police cadets, in an effort to promote understanding of IPR as a first step in increased enforcement. COMMENTS ON INDUSTRY SUBMISSION -------------- ¶8. (U) Business Software: Post has no additional information regarding industry submission. ¶9. (U) Music Piracy: Music piracy is clearly a vibrant, going concern in Greece. Any visitor to central Athens will receive multiple offers to buy pirated CDs from roving individuals. Direct law enforcement control of these individuals engaging in piracy is low. Furthermore, in the event that one of these vendors is arraigned in court, even repeat offenders often receive fines well below those established by law, or suspended jail terms without a fine. Public sympathy for these perpetrators who are &just trying to get by8 is high. ¶9. (U) However, Post questions the inclusion of claims regarding the nationality of the malfeasants, or their links to criminal syndicates. These claims, frequently repeated by the Greek media, local anti-piracy organizations, and even some GoG officials, have not been documented by law enforcement agencies. In no case do they help combat the problem. Also, the suggestion that piracy is the direct result of lax State enforcement of immigration policy has not been documented or brought to Post,s attention. ¶10. (U) Entertainment software piracy: Post has no additional information regarding industry submission. ¶11. (U) Audiovisual piracy: It is clear that audiovisual piracy is occurring in Greece, although at a level below that of music piracy. Despite repeated requests to the industry and its local representatives, no figures or methodology for calculating industry losses have been provided to post. ONGOING AREAS OF REVIEW -------------- ¶12. (U) Optical Media Piracy: Optical media piracy in Greece is a regional problem. The direct production of pirated optical media is not believed to be widespread in Greece, but largely imported from Central/Eastern Europe and Asia. Post has been unable to determine if Greece has a formal and consistent licensing policy for optical media manufacturing capacity, equipment, or material inputs. SID codes are visible on most locally manufactured CDs, however. ¶13. (U) Use/Procurement of Government Software: Although the absolute amount is believed to be on the decline, many government organs, including some ministries, are believed to illegally share computer software. In many cases, this illegal sharing takes place as a result of ignorance of what constitutes piracy. Although Greece has taken steps to combat this problem, the process of educating government users and enforcing licensing rules will take some time and the dedication of more resources than are currently available. Greece does have a governmental circular in place (YAP/F.00/B/167/266),which specifically obligates all levels of the State Government to abide by all IPR laws and regulations, including software licensing agreements, and assigns responsibility for proper use of software to the Directors of Information Technology of each government agency. ¶14. (U) TRIPs Compliance: Greece is fully TRIPs compliant. ¶15. (U) Enforcement: As described earlier, Greece has a problem with enforcement of its IPR legislation. Most of the enforcement difficulties are with the judicial branch, where judges do not receive any significant training regarding IPR issues either before or after the assumption of their duties. Ill-informed on Greece,s legislation, or the economic impact of IPR violations, most judges are unwilling to impose fines they view as excessive against the low-level vendors of pirated or trade-mark infringed goods. Although the GoG has the political will to combat piracy, it will need prodding to make the additional effort necessary to provide training for judges. RIES