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International Property Rights

Abstract

The current global economy is characterized by dramatic changes in identification of areas of economic progress. The main focus is now moved to accelerated innovation development, a transition to a strategy that is based on knowledge and intelligence. The basis of this development is intellectual property of nation, academic achievement, conversion results of creative activity in the production of material and spiritual wealth.

The significant part of cogitative storming in economic upgrowth is increasing worldwide, ahead of the significance of the means of production and natural resources. Today, wealth is created by the introduction of new technologies and innovations that use creative knowledge in practice. The volume of trading intellectual property rights and licenses in the world is developing extremely dynamically.

International Property Rights on an International Scale: Safeguarding Ideas from Imitators

Introduction

It is known that human activities could be reproductive and creative. Reproductive activity is a process that is performed due to detailed algorithm, and during which a product is created that has no novelty for both the subject (subjective novelty) and for other members of society (objective novelty). Creative activity is different from reproductive one since this activity does not have the algorithm that resulting in good product that has an objective or subjective novelty (Li, 2010). The process of formalization is a prerequisite for acquiring intellectual property rights as prescribed by law, which may have some differences in different countries.

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The Meaning of Intellectual Property

Usually the concept of “intellectual property” is understood in the sense provided in the text of Convention signed at Stockholm during summer of 1967 by World Intellectual Property Organization. Second article of this Convention recognizes that “intellectual property” includes rights relative to literary, creative and scientific works; executive activities of artists, music recordings, radio and TV transmission; ingenuities in all sectors of human practice; scientific discoveries; industrial designs; trademarks, trade names and commercial signs; defense against inequitable emulation, and other orderliness resulting from intelligent use in the manufacturing, scholarly and creative areas (Abeyratne, 2005).

Historical Progress in Intellectual Rights Evaluation

With respect to copyright, the key moment in this development was the establishment of a printing machine invented by Gutenberg in the 15th century, which made it possible to copy books mechanically rather than rewrite them by hand. However, this required additional costs. Under these conditions, there is a need of protection against competition from manufacturers and sellers of illegal copies. The kings in England, France and Germany provided benefits for entrepreneurs in the form of exclusive rights to the reproduction of printed copies and their circulation for a limited period. In case of violation of these rights, there were compulsory measures of protection such as fines, arrests, confiscation of illegal copies and claims for compensation of possible losses (Haugen, 2005). The introduction of printing led to the dramatically increased sales and, therefore, income of printers and sellers. Accordingly, authors raised the issue of books for ability of their rights. Consequently, in England, in 1709, the Parliament adopted the Statue of Queen Anne, which was the first law of copyright. It provided for an author the exclusive right to print and publish a book for 14 years from the date of first publication. The law was supposed to double for an extra 14 years if an author was alive.

In 1791-1793, the foundation of the French system of copyright was laid. However, in England and in France, copyright regarded essentially as property rights with economic value and as property rights.

The next pulse to copyright added German philosophers including Immanuel Kant. They stated that copyright is not just a form of ownership that provides economic benefits to the author, but something more, the part of his/her personality. Finally, this idea has led to the development of a system of moral rights.

The priorities of intellectual property rights, among other objects of property, were embodied in the legislation of some US states. For example, in Massachusetts, the law of 17 March 1789 noted that “there is no property which belongs to the man than the one which is the result of mental work”. Modern form of the law of “copyright” is enshrined in the 1976 in the United States, which garant the legitimate safeguard of copyright throughout the life of an author and 50 years (currently 70 years) after his/her death (Haugen, 2005).

Concerted divergence of copyright law exists in common law countries and countries with codified civil law. The first related to copyright as a form of property that can be set individually of by a group of authors and being created. So, it can be traded like other forms of proprietorship. Copyrights are aimed solely at obtaining economic benefits. Countries with codified civil law of copyright as a property characteristics and the law seek to protect the material content of the property. However, in this case, copyright also embodies the idea that the work of an author is an expression of his/her personality, which requires the same protection of rights to it, as well as potential property work (Plomer, 2013).

Modern Principles of Property Rights Guarding

Development and protection of international property throughout the world engaged in the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) was founded by the United Nations in 1967. The WIPO promotes the signing of new international agreements and modernization of national law. It also stands for administrative cooperation between countries, gives technical assistance to developing countries, and maintains services that facilitate international protection of inventions, trademarks and industrial designs. The WIPO administers 21 agreements covering the main aspects of intellectual property (Grotto, 2004).

Ground documents of intellectual property rights are the Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property established in 1883 and the Berne Convention established three years later in 1886. Paris convention includes four different categories. First of them guarantee such aspect as the right to national treatment. This treatment is relevant in each member country of convention. Next category provides the right of priority as permanent basic right. Third category includes a list of rules that includes notes for establishing rights and obligations of natural persons and legal entities, and argumentation requiring or permitting the member countries to enact legislation of following notations. Last category deals with administrative and legislative sides of interaction due to the Convention treaties.

The aim of the Berne Convention, as indicated in its preamble, is to protect the rights of authors in their creative work and ideas. This protection should be provided in the most effective and coordinated way.

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Also there are some agreements and treaties that are additions to above Paris and Berne convention. These conventions are The WIPO Copyright Treaty (WCT), The Madrid Agreement Concerning the International Registration of Marks and the Protocol Relating to the Madrid Agreement, The Trademark Law Treaty (TLT), The Hague Agreement Concerning the International Deposit of Industrial Designs, The Patent Law Treaty (PLT), Treaties on Classification (The Strasbourg Agreement Concerning the International Patent Classification, The Nice Agreement Concerning the International Classification of Goods and Services for the Purposes of the Registration of Marks, The Vienna Agreement Establishing an International Classification of the Figurative Elements of Marks, The Locarno Agreement Establishing an International Classification for Industrial Designs), The International Convention for the Protection of Performers, Producers of Phonograms and Broadcasting Organizations (“the Rome Convention”), The Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (“TRIPS”) and WIPO-WTO Cooperation (Roughton, 2008).

All these treaties provide some sort of registration of intellectual property rights as a sequence of actions aimed at obtaining the rights to an invention, utility model, industrial design, which is protected by the state and certified by a patent. Trademark rights are attested by evidence of copyright, which is not subject to mandatory registration (Slotboom, 2005).

Conclusion

Intellectual property rights are exclusive in nature. Only authors, artists, inventors and others that own personal intellectual property have the right on their individual ideas and projects. And only they can use these rights. All other persons must refrain from violating those rights and make use only with the consent of intellectual property.

Scientific and technical documentation may be protected as an object of copyright, patentable technical solution and a trade secret. In the first case, the protection provided by the form and consistency of the material and provided protection against the copying, the second – prescribed in the idea of defending institute patent protection; in the third – the idea is protected within the privacy of its use.

The sources of intellectual property rights should be classified as multilateral and bilateral international agreements concluded in the cooperation between the states in this area. Their adoption is due to the fact that national legislation does not apply in cases where a holder sells their intellectual rights or protect them from violations in another country. In this case, a person may use or rely on the rules of the international convention, or the principle of national treatment provisions of the decree of the state where aegis is indispensable. List of provided rules determine which state has the right to apply to specific relationships are usually the most international treaties.