The United States, European Union, Japan, Switzerland, Canada, Mexico and South Korea announced in October, 2007, that they had reached a tentative agreement on a framework for a new multi-lateral Agreement intended to establish a stronger set of common standards for Intellectual Property (IP) enforcement among their countries.

The proposed Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA) would provide for stronger international coordination, agreement on the best enforcement practices and alignment on provisions of legal frameworks to ensure that adequate criminal, civil and border protection measures are in place.

“Expectations for ACTA are high. This proposed agreement has the potential to deliver significant improvements in establishing stronger international guidelines and standards, and providing governments with clear directives for action,” said INTA Executive Director, Alan C. Drewsen.

The two business organizations are calling for the negotiations on the new anti-counterfeiting agreement to begin as soon as possible.

“The governments that so far have agreed to engage in negotiating the new agreement have made a commitment to complete the process and we urge them to get started without further delay,” said Bob Wright, Co-Chairman of the ICC’s Business Action to Stop Counterfeiting and Piracy (BASCAP) initiative and Vice Chairman and Executive Officer, General Electric. “We recognize the work involved in completing an agreement of this magnitude, and we stand ready to work with the governments involved to move the agreement forward.”

Vice President and Global Anti-Counterfeiting Counsel for Unilever P.L.C., Richard Heath, who also serves as BASCAP Steering Committee Co-Chair and INTA President-Elect said, “It is essential that the work include the views of those in the business community that are directly harmed by the growing international trade in counterfeit goods.”

To help facilitate the treaty’s path to implementation, INTA and ICC’s BASCAP have developed a paper summarizing their support for the agreement and their views on the most important provisions to be included in ACTA. The two groups plan to send the paper to the leaders of the governments that to date are supporting the negotiation of ACTA urging them to keep the process moving forward.

INTA and the ICC endorse a framework for a multilateral treaty that includes setting high standards for measures to combat counterfeiting, improving coordination of national and international enforcement efforts, increasing the powers of customs officials to disrupt the flow of counterfeits through Free Trade Zones, working with business to address the growing problem of the sale of counterfeits on the Internet, and treating international trade in counterfeits as a transnational crime which often involves organized criminal syndicates that take advantage of jurisdictional differences.

The International Trademark Association is a worldwide association of member companies and firms that support and advance trademarks and intellectual property as elements of fair and effective global commerce.