U.S. Says China, Russia Among Worst Copyright, Patent Offenders

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Washington - The U.S. listed China and Russia as the world’s worst offenders in failing to protect copyrights and patents, saying pirated movies and music worldwide cost American companies revenue.

The U.S. Trade Representative’s annual report on patent and copyright infringement also calls out Thailand, Canada and India to toughen legal protections and crack down on those making illegal copies.

“Intellectual property theft in overseas markets is an export killer for American businesses and a job killer for American workers here at home,” U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk said in a statement today.

President Barack Obama has made protection of patents and copyrights a core part of his effort to double U.S. exports over the next five years.

“Our single greatest asset is the innovation and the ingenuity and creativity of the American people,” Obama said in a speech in Washington on March 11. “It is essential to our prosperity and it will only become more so in this century. But it’s only a competitive advantage if our companies know that someone can’t just steal that idea.”

BusinessWeek

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