VZCZCXYZ0007
PP RUEHWEB

DE RUEHBO #0684/01 0611303
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 021303Z MAR 09
FM AMEMBASSY BOGOTA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 7441
INFO RUEHRI/AMCONSUL RIO DE JANEIRO 0132
RUCPDOC/DEPT OF COMMERCE WASHDC

UNCLAS BOGOTA 000684 
 
SIPDIS 
 
EEB/TPP/IPE MCGOWAN 
COMMERCE FOR MAC A. ROSEN 
RIO FOR IPR REGIONAL ATTACHE DMAZERKEVICH 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: KIPR ECON ETRD CO
SUBJECT: COLOMBIA -- 2009 SPECIAL 301 REVIEW 
 
REF: STATE 8410 
 
¶1. (U) SUMMARY.  Post recommends Colombia remain on the 
Special 301 Watch List.  The Colombian Government has made 
substantial efforts over the last year to combat the theft of 
intellectual property.  The penalties for pharmaceuticals 
counterfeiting have been stiffened.  The level of cooperation 
both within the Government of Colombia and between the GOC 
and the private sector on IPR issues has increased. 
Nonetheless, the incidence of IPR violations is still high 
due to the relatively small amount of resources devoted to 
IPR protection and a judiciary that does not consider IPR 
protection a priority. END SUMMARY. 
 
IMPLEMENTATION OF INTERNATIONAL OBLIGATIONS 
------------------------------------------- 
 
¶2. (U) Intellectual property lawyers generally agree that 
Colombia complies with its international obligations under 
TRIPS and other agreements.  However, the international 
pharmaceutical industry has expressed concerns that the 
difficulties associated with obtaining patents for 
improvements and second uses may constitute a violation of 
its TRIPS commitments. 
 
DATA PROTECTION 
--------------- 
 
¶3. (U) Colombian decree 2085 of 2002 provides a five-year 
protection for product and patent process data for 
pharmaceuticals.  The industry has raised concerns over 
obstacles to obtaining preliminary injunctions before a 
potentially patent-infringing product enters the market. 
Colombia's data protection norm for the agrochemical sector 
provides five years of data protection.  Industry has 
expressed a desire for a longer period of data protection for 
agrochemical products, and under the U.S.-Colombia Trade 
Promotion Agreement (U.S.-CTPA), this period would be 
extended to ten years. 
 
ENFORCEMENT 
----------- 
 
¶4. (U) Colombian authorities conducted 857 raids and seized 
2,290,537 pirated sound recordings, 1,796 CD burners and 567 
DVD burners.  Industry is generally pleased with enforcement 
actions by police and prosecutors but notes that these 
actions are often limited to Bogota and Medellin. 
 
¶5. (U) GOC and industry contacts expressed concern over the 
lack of basic IPR knowledge on the part of judges.  In 
particular, they cited an April 30, 2008 Supreme Court 
decision that "the illegal download of music to personal 
computers is something insignificant that cannot be 
considered a crime."  In general, the judiciary does not 
fully understand the importance of IPR enforcement.  The 
Commercial Service and the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office 
delivered an enforcement seminar in June 2008 aimed at 
training 70 judges and prosecutors on IPR issues.  One judge 
noted that he had 3,000 pending cases and "finally understood 
what he needed to do."  Seminar participants lamented the 
lack of funds, personnel and training for enforcement; 
several noted the difficulties associated with not having 
designated judges hear IPR cases. 
 
INTERNET PIRACY 
--------------- 
 
¶6. (U) Internet piracy is a significant and growing concern 
in Colombia.  Industry estimates that internet piracy of 
music accounts for virtually all of the internet music 
market.  There is virtually no punishment of internet IPR 
violators in Colombia.  The U.S.-CTPA would introduce more 
stringent measures to fight internet piracy. 
 
PRODUCTION, IMPORT AND EXPORT OF COUNTERFEIT GOODS 
--------------------------------------------- ----- 
 
¶7. (U) The importation of counterfeit and pirated goods 
linked to illegal armed groups, criminal gangs and 
narco-traffickers in Colombia is a major concern. 
Authorities believe that narco-traffickers import contraband 
as a way of laundering drug profits.  Industry has applauded 
GOC efforts to halt the importation of counterfeit and 
pirated goods, including increased coordination among 
different agencies responsible for inspections.  Nonetheless, 
limited resources sometimes impede basic elements of 
interdiction, such as warehousing confiscated items. 
 
 
¶8. (U) Importation of counterfeit liquor in the northern 
department of La Guajira remains a problem.  In 2008, 
Colombia increased penalties for counterfeit medicines and 
food from 4-8 years to 6-12 years, essentially making it a 
jailable offense. 
 
OPTICAL MEDIA PIRACY 
-------------------- 
 
¶9. (U) Optical media piracy remains a serious issue. 
Industry estimates that pirated CDs accounted for 71 percent 
of the physical music market.  The figure is even higher 
outside of the larger cities where raids are concentrated. 
 
BOOK PIRACY 
----------- 
 
¶10. (U) The illegal photocopying of textbooks, books, and 
journals, particularly in and around universities continues 
to be a grave problem in Colombia.  Government decree 1070 of 
April 7, 2008 requires that educational institutions and 
photocopy companies obtain the authorization from copyright 
holders' representatives before permitting reproduction of 
their works. 
 
GOVERNMENT AND BUSINESS SOFTWARE 
-------------------------------- 
 
¶11. (U) The GOC requires that all software government 
entities procure and use be properly licensed.  In addition, 
law 603 of 2002 requires Colombian companies to certify their 
compliance with copyright laws.  GOC contacts say there has 
been greater enforcement of this law in 2008.  Industry 
estimates that in 2008, 58 percent of the software market was 
pirated, down slightly from 59 percent in 2007 and 
translating into 127 million dollars in lost revenue. 
 
WIPO TREATIES 
------------- 
 
¶12. (U) Colombia ratified the 1996 WIPO Copyright Treaty and 
WIPO Performance and Phonograms Treaties in 2002. 
BROWNFIELD