Protection of Traditional Cultural Expressions and Traditional Knowledge

At its tenth session, the WIPO Intergovernmental Committee (IGC) identified ten key questions relating to the protection of traditional cultural expressions/expressions of folklore (TCEs/EoF) and traditional knowledge (TK).

The IGC established a commentary process regarding these issues, which took place between its tenth and eleventh sessions. The Committee then undertook an extensive review of the issues and commissioned factual extractions of the comments and viewpoints made on these issues:

The Protection of Traditional Cultural Expression/Expression of Folklore: Factual Extraction (January 31, 2008)
The Protection of Traditional Knowledge: Factual Extraction (February 18, 2008)

List of issues

Expressions of folklore

Definition of traditional cultural expressions/expressions of folklore that should be protected.
Who should benefit from any such protection or who should hold the rights to protectable TCEs/EoF?
What objective is sought to be achieved through according intellectual property protection (economic rights, moral rights)?
What forms of behavior in relation to the protectable TCEs/EoF should be considered unacceptable/illegal?
Should there be any exceptions or limitations to rights attaching to protectable TCEs/EoF?
For how long should protection be accorded?
To what extent do existing IPRs already afford protection? What gaps need to be filled?
What sanctions or penalties should apply to behavior or acts considered to unacceptable/illegal?
Which issues should be dealt with internationally and which nationally, or what division should be made between international regulation and national regulation?
How should foreign rights holders/beneficiaries be treated?

Traditional knowledge

Definition of traditional knowledge that should be protected.
Who should benefit from any such protection or who hold the rights to protectable traditional knowledge?
What objective is sought to be achieved through according intellectual property protection (economic rights, moral rights)?
What forms of behavior in relation to the protectable traditional knowledge should be considered unacceptable/illegal?
Should there be any exceptions or limitations to rights attaching to protectable traditional knowledge?
For how long should protection be accorded?
To what extent do existing IPRs already afford protection? What gaps need to be filled?
What sanctions or penalties should apply to behavior or acts considered to unacceptable/illegal?
Which issues should be dealt with internationally and which nationally, or what division should be made between international regulation and national regulation?
How should foreign rights holders/beneficiaries be treated?

Comments

Comments on the issues were received from IGC members and accredited observers. These comments have been incorporated in working documents:

WIPO member states and observers

Member State / Observer	Traditional Cultural Expressions	Traditional Knowledge	Traditional Cultural Expressions and Traditional Knowledge
Brazil
China
Colombia
European Union
Ghana
Guatemala
Hungary
Japan
Kyrgyz Republic
Latvia
Mexico
New Zealand
Nicaragua
Norway
Qatar
Switzerland
Tunisia
United States of America

IGC accredited observers

IGC Observer	Traditional Cultural Expressions	Traditional Knowledge	Traditional Cultural Expressions and Traditional Knowledge
Eurasian Patent Office
Federación Iberolatinoamericana de Artistas Intérpretes y Ejecutantes (FILAIE)
International Chamber of Commerce (ICC)
International Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers & Associations (IFPMA)
International Publishers Association (IPA)
Intellectual Property Owners Association (IPO)
Ogiek Community
Russian Association of Indigenous Peoples of the North (RAIPON)

Protection of Traditional Cultural Expressions and Traditional Knowledge – Key Issues