China, Russia top blacklist in annual US trade review

The "Special 301" report released by US Trade Representative (USTR) Rob Portman said that in total, 13 countries feature on the list of those most guilty of ripping off US intellectual property rights (IPR).

In addition to China and Russia, the 11 other countries on this year's list are Argentina, Belize, Brazil, Egypt, India, Indonesia, Israel, Lebanon, Turkey, Ukraine and Venezuela.

"This report acknowledges the positive steps that several of our trading partners have taken to strengthen IPR protection over the past year," Portman said.

"However, more needs to be done. Our review reveals a continuing need for improvements, particularly with the implementation of effective protection and enforcement against piracy and counterfeiting," he said.

Not for the first time, the USTR report placed a special emphasis on copyright thefts taking place in China.

It said the United States recognized efforts by Beijing to curb the problem but said IPR enforcement in China continues to lag "far behind" promises made by the communist government.

The report said that for the first time, the USTR office would scrutinize IPR protection and enforcement at the provincial level in China.

China analysts here say that while some in the central government in Beijing are committed to stemming the tide of IPR abuses, the commitment is far weaker among regional governments, which enjoy closer ties to local industries.

Under mounting pressure from the United States, China has responded with an array of promises including a requirement for all domestic computers to be pre-installed with legitimate software.

State media said Thursday that China would "severely" punish officials who fail to enforce IPR protection under a new action plan for 2006-7.

But the USTR report said copyright abuses persisted right under the noses of officialdom, including in Beijing's "notorious" Silk Street Market, a multi-storey emporium of fake handbags, electronics and watches.

Russia is another "serious concern", the annual report said.

Moscow has taken steps to curb pirated production of CDs and DVDs, particularly in factories located on government-owned property, but "high levels" of IPR infringement remain at disc plants and on Internet websites.

The report highlighted the problem posed by websites such as Russia's www.allofmp3.com and www.Baidu.com in China, which it said are massive clearing houses for illegal downloads of music.

And it said counterfeit medication has become a more pressing problem in China and Russia, not just for the "enormous" impact on US drug makers' earnings but for the potential hazard to human health.

But the report reserved praise for some countries that cracked down on counterfeit commerce in the past year.

Pakistan has made "notable progress" by shutting down pirate optical disc factories. Ukraine has implemented new legislation to combat pirate disc production, and Brazil is taking steps to improve IPR enforcement, it said.

In East Asia, the USTR report said Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, South Korea and Taiwan had all made progress against retail counterfeiting, Internet piracy and pirated disc production.

"However, numerous IPR problems persist, including ineffective enforcement of intellectual property rights, commercial-scale piracy of CDs, DVDs and CD-ROMs, and counterfeiting of consumer goods," the report said.

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