Greece: AmCham Engages Government and Private Sector on IPR

Reference ID: 10ATHENS208
Created: 2010-02-11 16:49
Released: 2011-08-30 01:44
Classification: UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY
Origin: Embassy Athens


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SENSITIVE
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E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: ECON KIPR GR
SUBJECT: Greece: AmCham Engages Government and Private Sector on IPR

Â¶1. (SBU) On January 26, the American-Hellenic Chamber of Commerce
held a conference on "Intellectual Property: Rights, Protection,
and Legal Framework." In addition to attracting a large audience
of more than 100, the conference succeeded in showcasing a
diversity of participants and speakers from both the public and
private sectors. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of
Economy, Competitiveness, and Shipping, and Ministry of Finance
were each represented on the panels, as well as in the audience,
with the Finance and Customs officials comprising nearly an entire
panel on "Measures and Recent Developments in Intellectual Property
Law Enforcement."

Â¶2. (SBU) EconCouns participated in the panel on "Policy Toward the
Infringement of Intellectual Property Rights, and Its Role in the
International Economy," and spoke on the negative impact of IPR
violations on innovation, productivity, and the economy.
Underscoring the role that protection of intellectual property
plays in promoting creativity and in attracting investment,
EconCouns stressed that inadequate IPR protection contributes to
job losses for citizens, income losses for companies, and revenue
losses for governments.

Â¶3. (SBU) GoG speakers noted that the government is focused on
improving its legislative framework; data collection; enforcement;
coordination of law enforcement; training, and public-private
collaboration. The development of new interagency efforts to
combat the problem were mentioned, including new police training
modules created jointly by the Ministry of Education and Ministry
of Foreign Affairs. An overall emphasis was placed on the need for
enhanced enforcement, especially within the judiciary, and public
awareness campaigns.

4 (SBU) Comment: This conference comes on the heels of the first
meeting of AmCham's new IPR Committee, comprising local industry
representatives from the Business Software Alliance, Nike, Pfizer,
and others, who are disappointed with the lack of GoG action on IPR
since the development of the government's Action Plan in February
Â¶2009. The Hellenic Copyright Office has assured Post that
significant steps have been taken in the last year, and a summary
of GoG activities is expected from the MFA shortly, which will be
reported septel.
Speckhard

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