- WTO grants Antingua to procede with sale of copywrt
- No plans have been announced describing how Antigua plans to proceed.
- Antigua maintains that they want negotiations with the US to continue.
The World Trade Organization (WTO) granted Antigua final approval on Monday to proceed with the sale of items protected under US copyright law as a means of compensation for what Antigua describes as unfair trade practices that “devastated” its economy.
Following today’s WTO approval, the small Caribbean nation plans to set up a website to sell US-copyrighted material without paying the copyright holders.
The US Government maintains that such actions constitute “government-authorized piracy.”
In a statement last month, the US made it clear that any attempt to circumvent US copyright law “would undermine chances for a settlement” and “serve as a major impediment to foreign investment in the Antiguan economy, particularly in high-tech industries.”
The dispute stems from a 2004 WTO ruling that found the US violated a General Agreement on Trade in Service by preventing Americans from gambling online with foreign gaming operators.
In 2007, the WTO authorized Antigua to seek some $21m annually in relief from the sale of US intellectual property.
Antigua insists that it would rather continue negotiations but the lack of progress in reaching an amicable agreement has left them little option.
No plans have been disclosed describing the methods by which Antigua would pursue the sale of US copyrighted property.
