Digital Copyright in the TPP

Abstract

This Chapter focuses on key copyright issues in TPP’s IP Chapter, especially those related to the Internet and digital technologies. Those issues include copyright term extension, safe harbor for Internet service providers (ISPs), technological protection measures, criminal liability, and limitations and exceptions. This chapter analyzes whether private and public interests represented by various stakeholders in the copyright ecology are taken into full account and kept balanced under TPP. This chapter also evaluates member states’ diverse considerations for implementing those copyright provisions. Furthermore, this chapter uses the IP Chapter as a lens to illustrate the international expansion of copyright facilitated by trade negotiations. Copyright and other provisions in the IP Chapter represent the US’s continuous efforts in raising the standards for IP protection internationally to strengthen its economic interests as a primary net-exporter of IP in the globe. These provisions go beyond the existing international IP treaties by providing stronger protection to right owners. US’s approach to the IP Chapter in TPP resembles the one it adopted in bilateral trade negotiation, which is primarily based on the US domestic law. Nonetheless, it should be noted that not all criticisms on TPP’s ignorance of public interests are valid. It may be too arbitrary to argue that the IP Chapter is completely indifferent about users’ interests and access to copyrighted works. Public interests are addressed in some provisions in the IP Chapter, whereas they were entirely or partly disregarded in most other ones.