WIPO takes next step toward broadcasting/webcasting treaty [ip]

[Declan McCullagh <declan () well com>]

http://news.com.com/2100-1028-5103456.html

Treaty casts shadow on Webcast rights
Last modified: November 6, 2003, 10:32 AM PST
By Declan McCullagh

A United Nations committee on Wednesday approved the world's first 
Webcasting treaty, which has drawn criticism that it limits the use of 
works that are in the public domain.

At a meeting in Geneva, the World Intellectual Property Organization's 
Standing Committee on Copyright and Related Rights agreed to prepare a 
draft of the treaty by April 1, 2004. A second meeting is scheduled for 
June, followed by an expected diplomatic conference during which nations 
that are members of WIPO--a U.N. agency--could sign the final treaty.

The treaty--which was proposed by the Bush administration and is backed by 
Yahoo, the Washington-based Digital Media Association and other U.S. 
Webcasters--generally seeks to extend to Webcasters the same level of 
international intellectual property protection that TV and radio 
broadcasters currently enjoy. The Webcasting sections are part of a broader 
proposal titled "Protection of the Rights of Broadcasting Organizations."

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