Policy Advisory Commission: World Intellectual Property Declaration

i. Conscious of the position of the World Intellectual Property Organization as the specialized agency of the United Nations with primary responsibility for the promotion of intellectual property all over the world;

ii. Encouraging the efforts of the World Intellectual Property Organization to increase openness, transparency and clarity in its work;

iii. Aware that the twenty-first century will see the acceleration of integration of the world's economies and the rise of knowledge-based societies, and that in such environments intellectual property will play a greater role in human endeavor than ever before in history;

iv. Assured of the universal relevance of intellectual property and intellectual property rights;

v. Mindful of the ongoing debate on many topically significant issues relating to intellectual property, including biotechnology, biodiversity, traditional knowledge, domain name cybersquatting and access to pharmaceuticals;

vi. Reaffirming the critical role of intellectual property in natural, economic and human resource development and in the protection of cultural diversity;

vii. Convinced of the need to ensure that developing countries and countries in transition are fully integrated into the international intellectual property system, so enabling them to fully benefit from the system; and

viii. Determined to reach outward to all peoples around the world and to inform them of the economic, social and cultural importance of intellectual property and intellectual property rights, and in particular of their potential to contribute to the creation of wealth for all peoples,

i. In this Declaration, the term "intellectual property" is held to mean any property recognizable by common consent as both intellectual in nature and meritorious of protection, including but not limited to scientific and technological inventions, literary or artistic productions, trade marks and identifiers, industrial designs and geographical indications.

ii. In this Declaration, the term "intellectual property rights" is held to mean in essence those rights enshrined in Article 27 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, adopted by the United Nations in 1948, namely that:

iii. In this Declaration, the term "creator" is held to mean any person or group of persons, whether acting as an independent entity or under the auspices of a Governmental or non-governmental organization, whether for profit or for other motives, responsible for creativity in any field, including notably science and technology; the arts including the performing arts and the output of certain categories of producers such as phonogram producers and broadcasters; trade marks and identifiers; industrial designs; and the development of geographical indications.

iv. In this Declaration, the term "user" is held to mean any person or group of persons, whether acting as an independent entity or under the auspices of a Governmental or non-governmental organization, whether for profit or for other motives, responsible for the use or consumption of creativity in any field, including notably those mentioned in article 2. iii above.

i. Intellectual property has historically been, and continues to be, a major and indispensable element in the progress and development of all humankind.

ii. From the earliest tools of prehistory, through the wheel, the Chinese abacus, the printing press, the Syrian astrolabe, the telescope, the harnessing of electricity, the internal combustion engine, penicillin, the computer and countless other innovations, it has been the inventiveness of the world's creators that has enabled humanity to advance to today's levels of technological progress.

iii. From the earliest rituals of prehistory, through the beginnings of music and dance, burial rites, cave paintings, the written word, folklore and theatrical representation, to the use of modern technologies such as the phonogram, celluloid film, wireless broadcast, software and digital recording, humankind has identified and defined itself through cultural creativity and expressions thereof in the form of artistic creations and performances, which may be described as intellectual property.

iv. From the first markings on pottery which indicated the authorship and reputation of the earliest Mesopotamian potter, through to the modern trademarks we know today, including those identifiers which are known as domain names on the Internet and those which are recognized as geographical indications, humankind has relied on systems of credible and incorruptible identification.

v. From the first industrial designs of the weaver and potter to those of the modern manufacturer, designer-creators have enriched and enhanced the daily lives of all humankind by their ingenuity.

vi. In general, and in particular in the context of development, intellectual property is relevant to any plan to provide education for all, with particular reference to the exceptional opportunity for human resources training evidenced in the Internet.

vii. Intellectual property is also relevant to efforts to protect the environment, to address shortages of food, water and energy, and to combat disease.

viii. Intellectual property can play a useful role in providing an additional financial incentive to scholars and research institutions, including universities, and can thus contribute to a virtuous circle of knowledge creation and sharing.

i. Intellectual property rights provide incentives to creators, and ensure that users have access to the benefits of creativity on an equitable basis.

ii. Intellectual property rights are an essential and integral part of any legal framework that intends to regulate on an equitable basis the civil behavior of creators and users, and so provide universal protection for the interests of all.

iii. Intellectual property rights are a key and integral tool in efforts to address the fundamental challenge of development for all, which at the end of the twentieth century stands as the most universally important responsibility facing humankind.

iv. Also in the context of development, efficient intellectual property systems are indispensable elements in securing investment in crucial sectors of national economies, particularly in developing countries and countries in transition.

i. The great contributions made by creators in the history of humankind, both in the past and today, as well as the achievements of those who have disseminated the benefits of those creations and inventions, are recognized, commended and supported.

ii. Recalling Article 29 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which recognizes that everyone has duties to the community in which he or she lives, it is held that intellectual property rights should be developed to provide an appropriate balance between the protection of creators and the interests of users of intellectual property.

iii. Intellectual property issues are recognized as especially critical to development activities, and it is held that special efforts must be made to assure the capacity of developing countries and countries in transition to benefit from fully-functioning and efficient intellectual property systems, including by provision of relevant jurisprudence, modernization of intellectual property offices, enhanced human resources training, and improvement of enforcement mechanisms.

iv. It is held that intellectual property rights apply equally to all creators and users of intellectual property without distinction or discrimination of any kind towards the holders of rights with regard to race, color, sex, language, religious orientation or any other status.

i. Encouragement should be given to all those who create or who wish to be creators.

ii. Efforts to ensure that all creators and users, in all parts of the world, are provided with adequate intellectual property rights, should be strengthened.

iii. Full support should be accorded to the efforts of developing countries and countries in transition to liberate and exploit for their own benefit their inventive and creative capacity, and to establish and develop effective national intellectual property systems; to this end adequate resources should be sought, so as to ensure equal opportunity among nations to enjoy the fruits of the knowledge-based society.

iv. Efforts should be made, making full use of information technology, to ensure that all creators and users, in all parts of the world, are knowledgeable about their rights, through ongoing efforts to enhance public awareness of intellectual property rights and to demystify intellectual property issues.

v. Efforts should be made, making full use of information technology, to disseminate and enhance public knowledge of intellectual property and intellectual property rights, so that interest in intellectual creations can be encouraged.

vi. Efforts should be made, making full use of information technology, to depoliticize intellectual property issues through ongoing efforts to enhance public awareness of the benefits to all of intellectual property and intellectual property rights.

vii. The great impact on intellectual property rights of the integration of the world's economies, and of the rapid development of information technology, should be recognized and acted upon.

viii. International services, such as the Patent Cooperation Treaty and the registration systems for trade marks and industrial designs, should be developed and enhanced.

ix. Appropriate policies should be formulated to develop a market for intellectual property rights, so as to increase their effective utilization.

x. Intellectual property rights should be developed to ensure the protection of cultural diversity.

i. The harmonization of national policies on the establishment of intellectual property rights should be sought, with the aim of protection at the global level.

ii. International cooperation on intellectual property issues has the potential to contribute significantly to the international development agenda, and should consequently be encouraged by all means possible.

iii. Governments should be encouraged to cooperate on the worldwide protection and use of intellectual property in both conventional and newly emerging areas.

iv. Cooperation between national and international intellectual property organizations and among intergovernmental organizations including United Nations agencies and departments and non-governmental entities, as well as with civil society, for the purposes of enhancing intellectual property rights across the world and of increasing universal understanding of these rights and their functions, should be encouraged.

i. This Declaration should be made readily available to the peoples of the earth, including by print and electronic means, in order that all persons without exception may be informed of the value to humanity of intellectual property and intellectual property rights.