 | |
| |
TechnologyDaily Mobile
Europe To Fight U.S. Over E-Gambling
by Winter Casey
The European Commission notified the United States on Tuesday that it will seek compensation over a U.S. ban on Internet gambling that the World Trade Organization said violates trade rules.
A commission spokesman said the European Union now expects to "enter into negotiations with the United States to reach agreement on the compensatory adjustments the United States should make to maintain a level of mutually advantageous commitments on services."
The spokesman said WTO rules allow any member nation "to modify or withdraw commitments made but in so doing it needs to negotiate compensation with those members affected by the withdrawal of such commitments so that the overall level of benefits is maintained."
Though the European Commission, the regulatory arm of the European Union, said the interests of its nations have been affected by the U.S. e-gambling ban, it has not yet determined how much compensation to seek.
The United States said in May that while a U.S. trade commitment concerning "recreational services" was previously interpreted as including an allowance for Internet gambling, the United States does not believe that interpretation is reasonable.
European Union officials hold that U.S. withdrawal of the commitments is not merely a clarification because the United States made clear commitments on gambling services during the Uruguay Round of trade negotiations, and they were an integral part of previous agreements. But the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative sees it differently.
"We look forward to learning the basis upon which WTO members -- who neither requested nor made WTO commitments on gambling and betting in the Uruguay Round and had no basis to believe that the United States had made such a commitment -- intend to support their claims of interest," a USTR spokeswoman said.
In March, the WTO said in a compliance panel report that the United States had failed to sufficiently comply with an earlier decision against U.S. e-gambling restrictions.
The WTO dispute dates back to a case that Antigua and Barbuda filed over U.S. e-gambling restrictions. The Caribbean country claimed successfully that the U.S. ban on cross-border gambling services violates trade law. The country also has argued that the United States failed to comply with a previous WTO ruling.
On Wednesday morning, Antigua and Barbuda said it is seeking concessions from the United States worth more than $3.4 billion each year for failing to comply with the WTO's ruling. Antigua and Barbuda plans to seek the concessions primarily through the suspension of the country's obligations in respect to copyright, trademark and patent law.
China Opposes U.S. Export-Licensing Rule
The Chinese government is concerned by proposed export-licensing requirements for U.S. companies that sell telecommunications, radio and software-related equipment to China.
"It is inappropriate and against the cooperative spirit for the United States to issue the new regulations without fully consulting China," the country's Commerce Ministry said.
The changes, announced Friday by the Commerce Department's Bureau of Industry and Security, are among several significant updates to U.S. policy for exporting to China "dual use" technologies -- those with both commercial and military uses. The United States also will remove individual licensing requirements for certain authorized customers.
"The unreasonable barriers to and preconditions for normal bilateral trade are not in line with the interests of the enterprises in both countries," according to the Chinese ministry. "They will undermine China's efforts to expand imports from the U.S. and run against the well-balanced development of bilateral trade."
China reserves the right to take responsive measures, Xinhua news reported Tuesday.
The United States said the rules would make it easier for U.S. companies to sell to pre-screened Chinese customers but would prevent U.S. technology from being used by China's military.
The Chinese ministry, meanwhile, announced Tuesday that the European Union, Japan and the United States remain China's three top trading partners.
Colombia's Legislature OKs Trade Pact
U.S. Rep. Phil Hare condemned last week's 55-3 vote in the Colombia legislature for a trade agreement with the United States.
"The United States is now one step closer to entering into a free-trade agreement with a nation which has the dubious distinction of being the most dangerous place in the world to be a labor organizer," the Illinois Democrat said in a statement. "The Senate vote -- in which 44 lawmakers either abstained or did not show up at all -- speaks volumes about the fear felt by Colombia's opposition party."
The U.S. Congress must approve the agreement before it can take effect. While the technology industry generally has supported pending trade pacts -- including those with Panama, Peru and South Korea -- some lawmakers and human rights groups have voiced concern over Colombia's history of deadly violence against trade unions.
In other news, the State Department and USTR announced last week that the United States and Rwanda have begun formal negotiations toward a bilateral investment treaty.
The purpose of the treaty would be to strengthen investor protections, encourage market-oriented economic reforms in Rwanda and improve the country's business climate. Deputy U.S. Trade Representative Karan Bhatia said Rwanda has attracted more attention from U.S. companies.
The negotiations with Rwanda are the first bilateral investment talks the United States has held with a sub-Saharan African country in close to a decade. The U.S. government claims that such treaties can provide significant legal protections for investments in partner countries.
Two-way goods trade between the United States and Rwanda was valued at $21 million in 2006, a 22 percent increase over 2005. U.S. imports from Rwanda were valued at $8.9 million, up 41 percent.
In India, meanwhile, the Communications and Information Technology Ministry released statistics on the growing number of telecom subscribers in the country.
China, Switzerland Form IP Working Group
China and Switzerland have established a working group on intellectual property, according to China's State Intellectual Property Office. As part of the deal, both countries will look to enhance dialogue and cooperation the issue.
The agreement was signed by the Chinese Ministry of Commerce and the Public Economy Department of the Swiss Confederation during the 17th meeting of the China-Switzerland Joint Commission on Commerce and Trade on May 29. The countries also considered new measures and approaches to further cooperation in trade, two-way investment and technology.
Also on the IP front, Chinese President Hu Jintao has called for more attention from the international community on creating technology solutions to environmental and energy needs and on protecting intellectual property. He made the appeal during the June 8 meeting of the Group of Eight leading industrialized nations.
India's government also said it plans to work with the other G-8 countries to strengthen research and innovation, protect intellectual property and support cross-border direct investment.
Meanwhile, The Peninsula reports that Qatar plans to launch a massive awareness campaign on the protection of patent and intellectual property rights.
NEW FEATURE
-Advertisement-
-Advertisement-
-Advertisement-
