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U.S.-Korea Free Trade Agreement: Potential Economy-wide ... - USITC

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In another submission to the Commission regarding the patent provisions, the Semiconductor<br />

Industry Association (SIA) urged further definition of the “inequitable conduct” basis for<br />

patent revocation included in the IPR chapter. SIA seeks an exchange of notes between the<br />

two governments to clarify what it believes would otherwise be a vague term that could<br />

erode protection for semiconductor patents. 117<br />

Several of the <strong>Trade</strong> Advisory Committee Reports commented on the IPR chapter. The<br />

Industry <strong>Trade</strong> Advisory Committee on Intellectual Property Rights (ITAC 15) stated that<br />

it “strongly supports” the IPR chapter, stating that it “restores key provisions that had not<br />

been included in recent <strong>Trade</strong> Promotion <strong>Agreement</strong>s (TPAs) or FTAs.” 118 The report added<br />

that ITAC 15 particularly supports the copyright text of the agreement, which it believes<br />

“materially advances the U.S. national interest.” 119 The report cited some “limitations” of the<br />

FTA, including the exception to the national treatment obligation for particular analog<br />

communications; a 2-year transition period for copyright term extension; and the lack of<br />

provisions on compulsory licensing, patent disclosure, and parallel importation. The report,<br />

however, noted that the FTA, taken as a whole, is “very strong” and ITAC 15 strongly<br />

supports its approval by Congress. 120<br />

In its report, the Advisory Committee for <strong>Trade</strong> Policy and Negotiations (ACTPN) stated<br />

that it strongly endorses the IPR chapter. The ACPTN report said that the FTA contains “the<br />

strongest ever bilateral protections for intellectual property,” and cited particularly the<br />

enforcement provisions and state-of-the-art protections for trademarks, patents, Internet<br />

domain names, and copyrighted works. 121 The Industry <strong>Trade</strong> Advisory Committee for<br />

Information and Communications Technologies, Services, and Electronic Commerce (ITAC<br />

8) and the Industry <strong>Trade</strong> Advisory Committee on Consumer Goods (ITAC 4) also expressed<br />

support for the IPR chapter in their respective reports. 122<br />

The Industry <strong>Trade</strong> Advisory Committee for Chemicals, Pharmaceutical, Health/Science<br />

Products and Services (ITAC 3) said that most of its members support the IPR provisions<br />

of the FTA and particularly the provisions relating to patent linkage, data exclusivity, and<br />

patent-term extension, which they consider necessary to promote pharmaceutical<br />

innovation. 123 The report noted, however, that one of ITAC 3’s members, the Generic<br />

Pharmaceutical Association (GPHA), believes that while the standard of IPR protection in<br />

the United States carefully balances the goals of fostering pharmaceutical innovation with<br />

ensuring access to medicine, the FTA imposes barriers to the generics industry that do not<br />

exist in U.S. law. 124<br />

117 SIA, “Comments Re: No. TA-2104-24, U.S.-<strong>Korea</strong> <strong>Free</strong> <strong>Trade</strong> <strong>Agreement</strong>: <strong>Potential</strong> <strong>Economy</strong>-<strong>wide</strong><br />

and Selected Sectoral Effects,” written submission to the <strong>USITC</strong>, June 25, 2007, 4.<br />

118 ITAC (15) on Intellectual Property Rights, Advisory Committee Report, April 27, 2007, 2–3.<br />

119 Ibid., 13.<br />

120 Ibid., 6.<br />

121 ACTPN, Report, April 26, 2007, 5.<br />

122 ITAC (8) for Information and Communications Technologies, Services and Electronic Commerce,<br />

Report, April 27, 2007, 13; and ITAC (4) on Consumer Goods, Report, April 26, 2007, 5.<br />

123 ITAC (3) on Chemicals, Pharmaceuticals, Health/Science Products and Services, Advisory Committee<br />

Report, April 24, 2007, 15.<br />

124 ITAC (3) on Chemicals, Pharmaceuticals, Health/Science Products and Services, Advisory Committee<br />

Report, April 24, 2007, 16.<br />

6-29

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