BRUSSELS - Officials from the European Commission and the United States government discussed, in a meeting on February 1, 2007 in Geneva, the progress made in their joint fight against counterfeiting and piracy.
According to a press release by the European Commission, the reinforcing of cooperation between the US and the European Union (EU) is a result of the US-EU IPR Action Strategy on Enforcement that was launched during the EU-US Summit in Vienna in June 2006.
Officials from both governments have already been working closely together with industry and individual businesses on a range of initiatives:
- Customs officials have participated in joint targeting and examination of shipments in air, sea and mail environments in search of counterfeits and are exchanging information, working methods and training practices;
- Both the Group of Eight (G8) and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) have backed a renewed campaign to tackle Intellectual Property theft. The two governments are working together to ensure that these campaigns will have positive results;
- The US and the EU together with Japan and Switzerland introduced an important communication urging WTO members to work together constructively on the fight against piracy and counterfeiting.
- The US and EU governments have joined efforts to provide training and technical assistance to countries in South America, Asia and Eastern Europe about the protection and enforcement of IP;
- The US and the EU are working together to help small and medium-sized enterprise enforce their Intellectual Property Rights through developing training and professional resources.