WIPO PREPARATORY MEETING FOR DIPLOMATIC CONFERENCE TO CONCLUDE A TREATY FOR THE PROPNCTION OF INTEGRATED CIRCUITS: 14-22 NOVEMBER 1988
Summary
1. Much bickering, primarily over the role of the Commission at the Diplomatic Conference, the role of observers generally, and voting majorities. All of this will resurface at the Conference itself. The Commission indulged in some heavy-handed behind the scenes politicking to try to pressurise WIPO on the issue of Community participation they seem to think that the outcome was satisfactory but the member states' view was that the meeting had reduced the goodwill that the Community could expect at Washington. Ill-tempered coordination meetings.
Detail
-
Brazil awkward over agenda, but this was adopted as in IPIC/PM/1.
2.
3. IPIC/PM/2 formed the basis of discussions. The question of the substantive documents to be transmitted to the Diplomatic Conference allowed Brazil and Argentina to re-open the question of the Indian proposal (see report on Committee of Experts meeting). France re-kindled a dying debate by suggesting that proposals fundamentally different from WIPO's document should not be allowed after the start of the Conference. It seems clear that WIPO will submit only a revised treaty text and that if India re-submits its codicil proposal, with or without amendments, the Diplomatic Conference will have to decide which to adopt as a basic document. (There would be little doubt about the outcome, but the heart sinks at the thought of sitting through the arguments.)
4.
The debate on states and organisations to be invited to the Conference provoked much bidding for additional national observer organisations. UK exposed the absurdity of the already too-extensive list by requesting a place for our own branch of AIPPI. This led to a decision to exclude national bodies where the umbrella international body had been invited. European Community participation was debated inconclusively, to be taken up again when the form of invitations was discussed.
5. The draft rules were agreed after much debate and some changes. Community participation again figured prominently. The rules were amended to make clear that participation will be subject to a decision of the Conference itself.
5. The main rule changes were: rule 6 para 3 deleted since states can be relied upon to know what credentials and powers they need to provide, and deletion removed another contentious reference to the Community; rule 11 - instead of
JPZAAW