Ambassador Alfredo Suescum (Panama)

Australia

13 INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY AND SPORTS

372. Australia would like to thank the EU, US, Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago, and Mexico for placing this item on the agenda. Australians are serious about sport (though not sure if we are as serious as Jamaicans). We love to play sport - Australia is one of only two nations to have competed in every modern Summer Olympic Games. We love to watch or listen to broadcasts of sporting events - every November the whole nation stops to watch a three minute horse race – the Melbourne Cup. 373. Others here today have already mentioned the importance of IP in the world of sport: - patents and designs support the innovation of products that improve performance by our athletes; and - trade marks provide an opportunity for our sporting clubs and personalities to generate income from their brand; and - copyright in broadcasts makes it commercially viable for broadcasters to record and disseminate sporting events for our enjoyment. 374. I'd like to give an Australian example of the link between IP and sport – and how the patent system continues to support innovation - patent registration not only enables an innovator to monetise their invention, it also leads to information being captured and stored which can be later drawn on by other inventors 375. Swimming is a big part of the Australian way of life – in summer Australians spend long days outside at the beach or in the pool. Australia's professional swimmers are always on the lookout for innovations that could improve performance. Today many of our athletes wear swimwear made with patented hi-tech fabric designed to imitate the sleek skin of a shark. 376. But the road to this hi-tech innovation is paved with decades of innovative products. In the 1920s when Speedo was a small Australian hosiery company it pioneered the controversial 'racerback' swimsuit for women - in the 'racerback' style, which is commonly worn today, the top-back of the swimsuit is not covered in order to provide flexibility and movement of the arms during swimming. In 1932, 16-year old Australian Clare Dennis won the Women's 200 Meter Breaststroke at the Los Angeles Olympic Games. After nearly being disqualified for "showing too much shoulder" in her regulation silk Speedo brand swimsuit, she went on to set a world record time. 377. This is just one example of the innovation and creativity that goes hand in hand with sports, as efforts by athletes all over the world to maximise the human potential continue.

The Council took note of the statements made.

13.1. The Chairman said that this item had been put on the agenda at the written request by the delegations of the European Union, Jamaica, Mexico, and the United States. After the circulation of the proposed agenda, also Trinidad and Tobago had indicated that it wished to co-sponsor the item.

13.2. The representatives of the European Union, Mexico, Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago, the United States, Switzerland, Australia, Canada, Japan, Brazil, Venezuela, Korea, China, India, the Plurinational State of Bolivia, Cuba, Ecuador, Paraguay, the European Union and Nepal on behalf of the LDC Group took the floor. The statements will be reproduced in an addendum to the present record.

13.3. The Council took note of the statements made.

IP/C/M/74, IP/C/M/74/Add.1