Russia’s IP Commitments in WTO Accession

After 18 years of negotiations, Russia has recently won the approval from a key committee to join the World Trade Organization (WTO). The final decision on Russia’s admission is expected next month.

As the intellectual property rights violations have long been one of the major obstacles to Russia’s WTO entry, the accession agreement requires Russia to:

• Seek criminal charges against illegal optical disc production at government-controlled sites
• Impose more rigorous sanctions against piracy and counterfeiting
• Eliminate non-contractual administration of rights by the beginning of 2013
• Introduce stricter control of copyright collectives to ensure right holders receive proper remuneration
• Withdraw its reservations to the provisions of the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works before joining the WTO

For more information, please contact Jelena Jankovic at our Balkan Regional Office.