The United States announced an economic treaty with Singapore, which includes a clause binding both parties to DMCA-like intellectual property policies. According to Declan McCullagh:
A proposed agreement with Chile failed to materialize, possibly as retaliation for that nation's refusal to support the American war in Iraq.
(via Siva Vaidhyanathan) :: posted by Bryan, 9:19 PM |
According to the trade agreement, any person who "circumvents without authority any effective technological measure" or distributes a hardware device or software utility that performs a circumvention function will be violating the law. The language tracks closely that of the DMCA, which the U.S. Congress enacted in 1998 over the objections of some librarians and computer scientists, who see it as a threat to legitimate research and to legitimate uses of copyrighted materials.
A proposed agreement with Chile failed to materialize, possibly as retaliation for that nation's refusal to support the American war in Iraq.
Unspoken was the second part of the policy -- to punish those nations that did not support the United States in the war. Chile had expected to be the first country to sign such an agreement after completing negotiations in December, a full month before Singapore completed its agreement. But Chile lost that honor by refusing to support the United States in its call for war at the United Nations Security Council, where Chile is a member, senior administration officials said.
(via Siva Vaidhyanathan) :: posted by Bryan, 9:19 PM |
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