Secretary Rice Makes Commitment to Defend IP Rights

U.S. Representative John Carter (TX-31) is urging the protection of intellectual property rights around the globe. Congressman Carter, a member of the Congressional International Anti-Piracy Caucus, participated in a press conference today to unveil the top six countries on the 2006 priority watch list. The watch list identifies countries with high levels of intellectual property piracy.

Congressman Carter also had the opportunity to question Department of State Secretary Condoleezza Rice about steps being taken to fight against intellectual property piracy abroad during a Committee on Appropriations Foreign Operations Subcommittee hearing yesterday. Carter urged continuation of the program in place that enlists and assists foreign law enforcement officials in combating the commercial piracy of our nation’s intellectual property abroad. Congressman Carter has supported funding for this program and an initiative that would increase resources at the FBI dedicated to criminal intellectual property rights enforcement.

“The protection of intellectual property is an important issue to the future of our country. America is the world’s single largest creator, producer, and exporter of copyrighted materials. It is critical that we protect this industry so we might remain the leader of the world in our ideas. International piracy is a major issue, costing our country more than $15 billion in 2005,” Congressman Carter said. “I encourage the Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement to continue their efforts to fight a major criminal element in the world. I will continue to support initiatives that dedicate resources to protecting intellectual property.”

In yesterday’s hearing, Secretary Rice shared the Administration’s commitment to protecting intellectual property: “I couldn't agree with you more that intellectual property rights is right at the core of our economic competitiveness, and it's something we have to defend and defend furiously. The first part is that we have to absolutely insist that countries around the world that are engaged in piracy know that it is of the highest-order priority for the United States that they stop that engagement. …I can assure you, Congressman, that it's very high on the agenda. We consider it a real threat to American competitiveness. We are a knowledge-based economy.”