A new scheme for notifying and registering geographical indications, was proposed by Japan and the United States.
According to this scheme, members would inform the World Trade Organization (WTO) of the geographical indications being protected in their own country.
WTO would publish a list of the reported geographical indications. This multilateral list would be referred to when members consider the registration of geographical indications. In a sense, this notification and registration system would act as a database for geographical indications. It is restricted, however, to covering only the goods of wines and spirits.
This proposal followed a previous one by the European Union (EU). Under the EU proposal, products submitted for registration would be protected in all WTO member countries. In all cases, other proposals are being prepared and these matters would be the subject of discussion at the TRIPs Council meeting next month.