1. The Chair suggested that Members first consider notifications submitted under the TRIPS Agreement, then take up questions submitted by India to the European Union with respect to the enforcement of IPRs regarding goods in transit, and conclude with a Secretariat update on the status of the e-TRIPS project. He invited the Secretariat to report on notifications that the Council had received since its meeting in June 2018.
2. A representative of the Secretariat said that the Council had received the following notifications under Article 63.2 of the TRIPS Agreement:
a. Croatia had submitted a comprehensive package of 14 notifications. These included amendments to and codifications of its main dedicated IP laws and regulations in the fields of copyright and related rights, trademarks, geographical indications, patents, industrial designs and topographies of semiconductor products. A new Act on the Protection of Undisclosed Information with Market Value had also been notified.
b. Japan had notified revisions of its Patent and Design Acts, expanding in both cases the "grace period" regarding the exception to lack of novelty of inventions, from six months to one year. A revision of the Trademark Act had also been notified. It reportedly improved trademark application procedures through adding the requirement of divisional application.
c. Ukraine had notified its law "On Efficient Management of Property Rights of Right Holders in the Sphere of Copyright and Related Rights" of May 2018, which defined the legal and organizational principles of collective management of copyrights and related rights.
d. Colombia had notified its new "Orange Economy" Law of May 2017. This law promoted creative industries that generate value through their IP-based goods and services. It had also notified two updates to its copyright law. Amongst others, the right of remuneration of authors of cinematographic works, including directors and scriptwriters, for acts of communication to the public of audio-visual works is recognized. Finally, an amendment to a 2015 decree regarding certain aspects of the procedure for the declaration of the existence of reasons of public interest for compulsory licensing had also been submitted to the TRIPS Council.
e. Republic of Moldova had notified two Decisions of 2011 and 2018, respectively, approving and amending the Regulations on the Activity of Authorized Intellectual Property Attorneys which addressed the fundamental principles and rules of professional conduct.
3. Under Article 69, Ukraine had updated its contact points for the exchange of information and cooperation on trade in infringing goods, and, Tonga had notified new information regarding its contact points. The Members' transparency toolkit page had been updated accordingly.
4. The Chair invited delegations that had notified a new or revised legislative measures, or submitted updates to their contact points, to introduce their notifications. He also invited other delegations that might wish to comment on them.
5. The representatives of Colombia, Japan, Republic of Moldova, Ukraine, and the United States of America took the floor.
6. The Chair invited India to introduce its communication on the "Enforcement of IPRs Regarding Goods in Transit – Questions to the European Union" (circulated in document IP/C/W/636/Add.1).
7. The representative of the European Union and India took the floor.
8. The Chair turned to the e-TRIPS project and invited the Secretariat to provide an update on the development of e-TRIPS, an online platform for filing and consulting notifications and other Council documentation.
9. A representative of the Secretariat briefed Members on the development of e-TRIPS.
10. The Chair recalled that notifications to the Council were not keeping up with the actual development of laws and regulations relating to TRIPS. He recalled that Article 63.2 was not a oneoff requirement, but obliged Members to notify any new or amended laws. Therefore, he urged Members to complete any outstanding initial notifications and to keep up to date with notifications on subsequent amendments. The same applied to the Checklist of Issues on Enforcement which had been established by the Council as an element of Members' notification obligations.
11. The Council took note of the notifications and the statements made.
