Trips Agreement History

The 2002 Doha Declaration reaffirmed that the TRIPS Agreement should not prevent members from taking the necessary measures to protect public health. Despite this recognition, less developed countries have argued that flexible TRIPS provisions, such as compulsory licensing, are almost impossible to enforce. Less developed countries, in particular, cited their young domestic manufacturing and technology industries as evidence of the imprecision of the policy. In addition to the basic intellectual property standards established by the TRIPS Agreement, many nations have engaged in bilateral agreements to introduce a higher level of protection. This collection of standards, known as TRIPS+ or TRIPS-Plus, can take many forms. [20] The general objectives of these agreements are as follows: the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) was negotiated between 1986 and 1994 during the Uruguay Round of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), which led to the creation of the World Trade Organisation (WTO). The TRIPS Agreement establishes minimum levels for different types of intellectual property (IP) protection, including copyright, trademarks, patents, industrial design and trade secret protection. Accession to the WTO implies the obligation to respect the TRIPS Agreement. According to the WTO, the agreement attempts to strike a balance between long-term social benefits to society by increasing innovation and short-term costs to society due to lack of access to inventions (World Trade Organization: protection and enforcement). From the WTO Agreement: the Agreements: wto.org/english/thewto_e/whatis_e/tif_e/agrm7_e.htm).

Article 40 of the TRIPS Agreement provides that certain practices or conditions relating to intellectual property rights that restrict competition may have negative effects on trade and impede the transfer and dissemination of technology (paragraph 1). In accordance with the other provisions of the Agreement, Member States may take appropriate measures to prevent or control abusive and anti-competitive IPR licensing practices (paragraph 2). .