BDG PASSES COPYRIGHT LAW, LONG ROAD AHEAD

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 DHAKA 002367

SIPDIS

COMMERCE FOR ADINA ADLER
COMMERCE FOR BRYAN LOPP
USPTO FOR TIMOTHY BROWNING
STATE PASS TO USTR

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: KIPR ECON ETRD BG
SUBJECT: BDG PASSES COPYRIGHT LAW, LONG ROAD AHEAD



1. Summary: The BDG passed the Copyright Act of 2005 to
comply with WIPO standards. Although an important milestone,
implementing regulations are not yet drafted. The 2005
Patent and Design Act is in the clearance process in the Law
Ministry and the Trademark Law is expected to be sent for
Cabinet review soon. Enforcement of IPR laws remains
problematic. Post is planning a 2-day IPR event in July to
address training and awareness issues. End Summary.


2. The Copyright Act of 2005 passed easily in Parliament
on May 15. Drafted to comply with WIPO requirements, it
replaces the non-compliant Copyright Act of 2000. The BDG
must still draft implementing regulations, a process expected
to take two to three years.


3. The draft Trademark Law has been cleared by the Law
Commission and is ready for Cabinet review, after which it
will be sent to Parliament. The Deputy Registrar of the
trademark office expects Parliament to pass the law by
September.


4. The draft Patent Act is currently under review by the
Law Commission. The Law Ministry and then the Cabinet must
clear the draft before it is sent to Parliament. The PDTO
Registrar predicts passage by November.


5. Violations of copyright, patents, and trademarks are
commonplace, yet enforcement of IPR laws generally remains
problematic. BDG officials lack technical knowledge and
training in IPR protection and enforcement techniques.


6. Officials in the Copyright Office, within the Ministry
of Cultural Affairs, tell us that they are ill equipped to
handle the registration and enforcement process. They are
severely understaffed: 14 low level clerks support the lone
substantive official. The BDG approved only four of 33
requested positions, and even these remain unfilled. Lack of
office space, equipment, officers, and training remain key
problems. WIPO provided computers and necessary equipment
for the Copyright Office, but according to the Registrar,
employees were not trained to use the equipment.


7. The BDG merged the Patent Office with the Design and
Trademark Office in 2004 to streamline the process of
registration and enforcement. The new Patent, Design, and
Trademark Office (PDTO) is part of the Ministry of
Industries. Senior officials in the Ministry and in the PDTO
admit that they lack the necessary training and knowledge to
handle patent and trademark protection. The Minister of
Information, Motiur Rahman Nizami, said in an IPR conference
in early May that he learned more about IPR in the two hour
conference than he had in his three years in office. Working
level officials also admit they lack technical and
substantive skills.


8. The PDTO has 5 registrars and 81 employees. The BDG
has allocated another 31 positions to this office, which it
has yet to fill. WIPO and the EU provided computers and
automation equipment for the PDTO; however, the staff does
not have adequate training to operate the equipment.
According to the Registrar, 90 percent of patent
registrations are from foreign companies and they do not
receive many complaints of violations.


9. The trademark office within the PDTO also uses WIPO
equipment and computers, but the Registrar stressed the need
for training. Complaints regarding trademark violations are
frequent. Post has received complaints from several American
companies, including Coca Cola, Walmart, Kelvinator, A&E
(plastic products manufacturers) and Microsoft. Recently,
Post uncovered a local supermarket, named PriceClub,
illegally using the Costco, Sam's Club, PriceClub and Walmart
logos in its advertising and in the store display. We have
notified all American companies involved about this incident.
Local enforcement mechanisms are weak. Police raids and
arrests occur occasionally, but violators are released with
minor penalties.


10. To address awareness and training needs, Post is
organizing, with the USPTO, a 2-day IPR event in Bangladesh
in July. PTO trainers will hold seminars with specific
groups on separate issues like software copyright protection,
patent and trademark protection, enforcement mechanisms, and
counterfeiting and brand protection. The target groups will
include academics, IPR lawyers, government procurement
officials, manufacturers, ICT groups, chambers of commerce,
and enforcement officials from relevant agencies. The event
will include a press conference with local celebrities to
bring public awareness to these issues. Post expects this
event to be the first step in raising awareness and providing
further training and capacity building in IPR enforcement in
Bangladesh.
THOMAS