What is ACTA?
The Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA) is a trade agreement between the following states:
- United States: signed 1 October 2011 in Tokyo
- Australia: signed 1 October 2011 in Tokyo
- Canada: signed 1 October 2011 in Tokyo
- Japan: signed 1 October 2011 in Tokyo
- Morocco: signed 1 October 2011 in Tokyo
- New Zealand: signed 1 October 2011 in Tokyo
- Singapore: signed 1 October 2011 in Tokyo
- South Korea: signed 1 October 2011 in Tokyo
- European Union and 22 Member States: signed on 26 January 2012; final enactment into law is on hold pending a debate in the European Parliament in June 2012.
- Germany: not signed yet
- Cyprus: not signed yet
- Estonia: not signed yet
- Netherlands: not signed yet
- Slovakia: not signed yet
- Mexico:
- Switzerland:
Those countries describe it as a response "to the increase in global trade of counterfeit goods and pirated copyright protected works." It would create a governing body outside international institutions such as the World Trade Organization (WTO), the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) or the United Nations. The scope of ACTA includes counterfeit goods, generic medicines and copyright infringement on the Internet.
An official Summary of Key Elements Under Discussion published November 2009 states that "ACTA aims to build on existing international rules in the area of intellectual property, in particular on the TRIPS Agreement, and is intended to address a number of enforcement issues where participants have identified that an international legal framework does not exist or needs to be strengthened."
On 10 March 2010, the European Parliament adopted a resolution criticizing the ACTA with 663 in favor of the resolution and 13 against, arguing that "in order to respect fundamental rights, such as the right to freedom of expression and the right to privacy" certain changes in the ACTA content and the process should be made.
Who is for ACTA?
Well, I guess the signing government and parliaments. I've also heard that MPAA is for ACTA (source).
Who is against ACTA?
- Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF)
- Chaos Computer Club
- several pirate partys, e.g. the German Piratenpartei (source)
And why?
- treaty will restrict fundamental civil and digital rights:
- freedom of expression
- communication privacy
- removal of "legal safeguards that protect Internet Service Providers from liability for the actions of their subscribers" in effect giving ISPs no option but to comply with privacy invasions
See also
- Wikpedia: ACTA (big parts of my article are from this wiki-article)
- open letter 1
- Save the Internet
- STOPP ACTA
- French MEP quits and slams ACTA process as ‘a charade’