conflict between these recommendations and the Berne Convention, they ignore entirely (i) the facts that recent price changes in Australia have resulted entirely from the recent weakness of the Australian dollar, (ii) the realities of international trading in international titles, and (iii) the actual economics of book distribution in Australia, as explained in the submission to which this memorandum is attached. There is no evidence, for example, that booksellers would be able to offer the present wide range of titles more cheaply overall if they were able to import copies from parallel sources, or that they could carry the investment required in stockholding or be able to work on lower cash margins. The implementation of the recommendations would, indeed, be contrary to the interests of Australian consumers, and result in more expensive and less wide-ranging book supply.
13. Hong Kong Hong Kong would also suffer from permitting parallel importation of copyrighted goods, and place itself in probable confrontation with the Berne Convention and with international trading practice.
established
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