From: rseymour@reed.edu (Robert Seymour)
Date: Tue, 17 Jan 95 19:49:47 PST
To: rishab@dxm.ernet.in
Subject: Re: Known data havens for pirates? Doubtful
In-Reply-To: <gate.ms64yc1w165w@dxm.ernet.in>
Message-ID: <m0rURMu-0000wyC@shiva.reed.edu>
MIME-Version: 1.0
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In the world according to rishab@dxm.ernet.in:
> I forget who wrote:
> > blame them. Copyrighted data on a server in a jurisdiction that
> > doesn't acknowledege the copyrights - a prime use for Data Havens
> > when they come of age.

> I suppose you _are_ aware that the US has threatened China with punitive
> duties on $100 BILLION dollars worth of trade, and that China has started
> holding some show trials (without shutting down its state-owned CD-piracy
> factories). It's not going to be easy to find a country more willing and
> able to ignore international copyright law (Berne Convention etc) than China;
> however, despite howls of protest even China is likely to knuckle down 
> eventually. What may be likely is distributed piracy markets, such as 
> described in Tim's BlackNet spoof.

One of the major features of the Uraguay round of the GATT (General
Agreement on Tariffs and Trade) is a large revision of internation patent
and copyright law (which is currently de facto non-existent in many 
countries).  Intellectual copyrights are still somewhat vague in the
current agreement, but there will be a course for hearing through the
WTO (World Trade Organization).

In the case of Asian countries, APEC (Asian Pacific Economic Conference)
is laying out intellectual property right regulations for conference 
members (the US, Canada, and most of the Pacific Rim including China).
Though these agreements are still a long way from clearing up copyright
disputes and their enforcement remains dubious, they should help to 
stop such blatant infractions of copyright status.

Of course, one need not look to China for copyright violations, just take
a look at all the video tape pirates in New York or other cities ...

|Robert

-- 
Robert Seymour					rseymour@reed.edu
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