Chamber of Commerce, ‘ACTA protects jobs and investment’

The Chamber of Commerce has conducted a close study of the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement, which the Maltese government has signed, and concluded that the agreement safeguards the interests of legitimate businesses and the creation of sustainable jobs.

The Chamber said the agreement, much maligned by internet users and supporters of download sites, strengthens the fight against piracy both in the real and virtual worlds.

"It does not introduce any new internet policing requirements beyond any existing provisions in EU and member state legislation. It must therefore be stressed that this agreement will not create any additional legislation at the EU level, rather, it will support the enforcement of legislation that already exists," the Chamber said.

Concerns were also raised by the generic medicines industry that the original agreement could create confusion between counterfeits and the marketing of generic medicines - which are legal copies of original drugs - by extending sanctions aimed at copyright and piracy to the area of patent disputes.

"These concerns were also settled following negotiations on behalf of the industry. The amended agreement will not impact the legitimate generic medicines industry," the Chamber said.

ACTA was negotiated between several states, amongst them the United States, Japan and the European Union, creating controversy when news of the agreement was published by Wikileaks, leading to so called 'hacktavists' to campaign against the agreement. Supporters say ACTA is nothing like the internet laws mooted in the United States such as SOPA and PIPA.

"ACTA is being seen by business organisations across most of Europe as an important tool to protect intellectual property pights (IPR) and enforce already existing practices in the field of customs cooperation, civil and criminal enforcement," the Chamber said.

Its pan-European grouping Eurochambres has also described the agreement as an efficient tool to tackle intellectual property violations because the current international framework is insufficient, with counterfeiting and piracy are constantly on the rise.

A possible rejection of ACTA by the European Parliament or the refusal of a member state to sign the agreement would be a setback for the EU, which requires full unanimous approval of the agreement for its ratification.

"This would represent a further setback in terms of Europe's catch-up with other blocs in the area of research, technology, development and innovation. This means that its competitiveness and future growth prospects would be threatened further. The Malta Chamber urges all the other social partners to support ACTA," the Chamber said.