New Delhi: The United States has put India on its Priority Watch List for not providing adequate intellectual property protection that limit market access to American creators.
The US Trade Representative in this year’s Special 301 Report said trading partners like India and 8 other countries present the “most significant concerns” regarding insufficient IP protection or enforcement or actions.
“These countries will be the subject of particularly intense bilateral engagement during the coming year,” said the USTR.
The “Special 301” Report is an annual review of the global state of IP protection and enforcement.
This year’s report released on Friday is on the adequacy and effectiveness of US trading partners’ protection and enforcement of intellectual property rights.
“Intellectual property rights incentivize our creators, manufacturers, and innovators to invent new products and technologies,” said Ambassador Katherine Tai.
“The laws, policies and practices that protect those rights must appropriately balance the interests of creators with those seeking to use their creations. Failing to adequately and effectively protect those rights in foreign markets hurts the U.S. economy, the dynamism of American innovators and the livelihoods of our workers.”
The report said border, criminal, and online enforcement against counterfeiting remains a global concern.
“This past year, countries reported significant quantities of COVID-19 testing kits, personal protective equipment (PPE) such as N-95 and equivalent masks, and sanitizers, detergents, and disinfectants from China that were determined to be counterfeit.
Widespread counterfeiting in China’s e-commerce markets, the largest in the world, has also been exacerbated by the migration of infringing sales from physical to online markets, which accelerated during the COVID-19 pandemic.”
