1 June 2010Copyright

Tougher penalties for counterfeiters under ACTA

Counterfeiters may face tougher financial penalties in jurisdictions subscribing to the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA).

These include Australia, Canada, the European Union, Japan, Korea, Mexico, Morocco, New Zealand, Singapore, Switzerland and the US.

The ACTA article would strengthen the civil courts of many countries that are still awarding damages based on proven losses to the owner or the actual profits gained by the infringer. This will harmonise rules with the US and Canada. All IP rights, including copyright and trademarks, would be protected by the agreement.

Currently, an infringer of copyright or trademarks in the US is liable for statutory damages of up to $30,000 for each infringement, and an infringer of trademarks is liable for fixed amounts of up to $2 million for each infringement.

The agreement means that an infringer would have to pay a fixed amount in relation to each and every act of infringement. Those caught illegally downloading music could face damages in the region of one thousand times what it would cost to legally download a single song.

European countries such as the UK face a big change if the ACTA article stands. Robert Fry, a copyright expert at Beachcroft LLP, said: “The agreement contemplates a tariff of amounts for copyright and trademark violations. This is a fixed damages regime that the UK has never had, because UK courts have always had to assess damages based on the exact losses of the claimant.”

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