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Vol 7 No 1 - Roger Williams University School of Law

Vol 7 No 1 - Roger Williams University School of Law

Vol 7 No 1 - Roger Williams University School of Law

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in 1996, the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO)produced proposals for a similar international scheme for theprotection <strong>of</strong> databases. The EU Directive creates an exclusive suigeneris right for the makers <strong>of</strong> databases.51 The general objective<strong>of</strong> this right is to protect the investment <strong>of</strong> time, money and effortby the maker <strong>of</strong> a database, irrespective <strong>of</strong> whether the databaseis in itself innovative. According to the Directive, a database isprotected if there has been a substantial qualitative orquantitative investment in obtaining, verifying or presenting thecontents <strong>of</strong> the database.52 The duration <strong>of</strong> the protectionprovided by the Directive is fifteen years.53At present, the WIPO proposal has stalled. However, the EUDirective is slowly being introduced.54 The U.S. Congress hasconsidered a number <strong>of</strong> proposals for database protection but hasyet to enact a definitive sui generis regime. One proposal from1999 was the Collections <strong>of</strong> Information Antipiracy Act,55 whichread in part:1402. Prohibition against misappropriationAny person who extracts, or uses in commerce, all or asubstantial part, measured either quantitatively orqualitatively, <strong>of</strong> a collection <strong>of</strong> information gathered,organized, or maintained by another person through theinvestment <strong>of</strong> substantial monetary or other resources, soas to cause harm to the actual or potential market <strong>of</strong> thatother person, or a successor in interest <strong>of</strong> that otherperson, for a product or service that incorporates thatcollection <strong>of</strong> information and is <strong>of</strong>fered or intended to be<strong>of</strong>fered for sale or otherwise in commerce by that otherperson, or a successor in interest <strong>of</strong> that person, shall beliable to that person or successor in interest for the51. Id. at art. 8. The reciprocity principle embodied in art. 11 means thatdatabase makers from countries outside the EU will not be given the benefits <strong>of</strong> thesedatabase rights unless their countries <strong>of</strong>fer comparable protection to EU databasemakers.52. See id. at art. 7.53. Id. at art. 10.54. See, e.g., Council Directive 96/9/EC, 1996 O.J. (L77) 20, implemented by theCopyright and Rights in Databases Regulations 1997 (SI 1997/3032) (implementing theEU directive in the UK on Jan. 1, 1998); British Horseracing Board Ltd. v. William HillOrg., [2001] R.P.C. 31 (Ch. 2001) (Eng.).55. H.R. 354, 106th Cong. (1999).

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