Gowers Review of Intellectual Property
Encyclopedia
The Gowers Review of Intellectual Property was an independent review of UK intellectual property
(IP) focusing on UK copyright law
that was published in December 2006. The then Chancellor of the Exchequer
Gordon Brown
commissioned Andrew Gowers
to lead the review in December 2005. The Review was published on 6 December 2006 as part of the Chancellor's annual pre-budget report. The review concludes that the UK's intellectual property system is fundamentally strong but made 54 recommendations for improvements.
music CDs. Following the review, in January 2008 the government initiated a public consultation period on proposals to legalise personal copying.
of recorded music to be extended from the current 50 years after the date of recording. The British Phonographic Industry
and prominent musicians, such as Cliff Richard
and Ian Anderson
, had lobbied for an extension to 95 years, matching the length of copyright provided in the USA; other musicians, such as Dave Rowntree
of Blur
provided counteropinions. The Gowers Review found that the UK, compared with the USA, suffers no apparent impediment to creativity due to this disparity. To coincide with the publication of the review on the 6 December a full-page advertisement entitled Fair play for musicians
, was taken in the Financial Times of December 7, stating "We call upon the UK Government to support the extension of copyright on sound recordings", and was signed by over 4,500 musicians, including a few dead ones.
. In January 2009, as Google's "public policy manager", he called for reforms to incorporate exemptions similar to the United States' fair use
doctrine into UK and Europe copyright law.
Intellectual property
Intellectual property is a term referring to a number of distinct types of creations of the mind for which a set of exclusive rights are recognized—and the corresponding fields of law...
(IP) focusing on UK copyright law
Copyright law of the United Kingdom
The modern concept of copyright originated in the United Kingdom, in the year 1710, with the Statute of Anne.The current copyright law of the United Kingdom is to be found in the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 , as amended...
that was published in December 2006. The then Chancellor of the Exchequer
Chancellor of the Exchequer
The Chancellor of the Exchequer is the title held by the British Cabinet minister who is responsible for all economic and financial matters. Often simply called the Chancellor, the office-holder controls HM Treasury and plays a role akin to the posts of Minister of Finance or Secretary of the...
Gordon Brown
Gordon Brown
James Gordon Brown is a British Labour Party politician who was the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Labour Party from 2007 until 2010. He previously served as Chancellor of the Exchequer in the Labour Government from 1997 to 2007...
commissioned Andrew Gowers
Andrew Gowers
Andrew Gowers was appointed editor of the Financial Times in October 2001. He resigned from this post in November 2005 citing "strategic differences", following the FT losing a libel case brought by brokerage firm Collins Stewart Tullett Plc....
to lead the review in December 2005. The Review was published on 6 December 2006 as part of the Chancellor's annual pre-budget report. The review concludes that the UK's intellectual property system is fundamentally strong but made 54 recommendations for improvements.
Instruments - Balance
- 1 - "Amend section 60(5) of the Patents Act 1977 to clarify the research exception to facilitate experimentation, innovation and education"
- 2 - "Enable educational provisions to cover distance learning and interactive whiteboards by 2008 by amending sections 35 and 36 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988The Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 , also known as the CDPA, is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom which received Royal Assent on 15 November 1988. It reformulates almost completely the statutory basis of copyright law in the United Kingdom, which had, until then, been...
" - 3 - "The European CommissionEuropean CommissionThe European Commission is the executive body of the European Union. The body is responsible for proposing legislation, implementing decisions, upholding the Union's treaties and the general day-to-day running of the Union....
should retain the length of protection on sound recordings and performers’ rights at 50 years" - 4 - "Policy makers should adopt the principle that the term and scope of protection for IP rights should not be altered retrospectively"
Instruments - Coherence
- 5 - The Patent Office "should undertake joint working with African patent offices from mid-2007, with the aim of:
- helping them to take advantage of the flexibilities currently existing in the WTO/TRIPS architecture where appropriate; and
- encouraging them to make positive use of IP rights through dissemination of information in patents"
- 6 - "Encourage the international community under the auspices of the WTO to review the TRIPS status of the least developed countries prior to 2016 and consider whether further extension for reaching TRIPS compliance would be appropriate"
- 7 - "Government should encourage WTO members to ratify the amendments to TRIPS to make importation of drugs easier and cheaper"
Instruments - Flexibility
- 8 - "Introduce a limited private copying exception by 2008 for format-shifting for works published after the date that the law comes into effect. There should be no accompanying levies for consumers"
- 9 - "Allow private copying for research to cover all forms of content. This relates to the copying, not the distribution, of media"
- 10a - "Amend s.42 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 by 2008 to permit libraries to copy the master copy of all classes of work in permanent collection for archival purposes and to allow further copies to be made from the archived copy to mitigate against subsequent wear and tear"
- 10b - "Enable libraries to format-shift archival copies by 2008 to ensure records do not become obsolete"
- 11 - "Propose that Directive 2001/29/EC be amended to allow for an exception for creative, transformative or derivative works, within the parameters of the Berne Three Step Test."
- 12 - "Create an exception to copyright for the purpose of caricature, parody or pastiche by 2008"
- 13 - "Propose a provision for orphan works to the European Commission, amending Directive 2001/29/EC"
- 14a - "The Patent Office should issue clear guidance on the parameters of a ‘reasonable search’ for orphan works, in consultation with rights holders, collecting societies, rights owners and archives, when an orphan works exception comes into being"
- 14b - "The Patent Office should establish a voluntary register of copyright; either on its own, or through partnerships with database holders, by 2008.
- 15 - "Make it easier for users to file notice of complaints procedures relating to Digital Rights ManagementDigital rights managementDigital rights management is a class of access control technologies that are used by hardware manufacturers, publishers, copyright holders and individuals with the intent to limit the use of digital content and devices after sale. DRM is any technology that inhibits uses of digital content that...
(DRM) tools by providing an accessible web interface on the Patent Office website by 2008" - 16 - The Department for Trade and Industry "should investigate the possibility of providing consumer guidance on DRM systems through a labelling convention without imposing unnecessary regulatory burdens"
- 17 - "Maintain policy of not extending patent rights beyond their present limits within the areas of software, business methods and genes"
Operations - Award
- 18 - "The Government should encourage the EPO to pursue work sharing with the USPTO and JPO"
- 19 - "The Patent Office should pursue work sharing arrangements with EPC member States, and trilaterally with the USA and Japan to reduce cross-national duplication of effort"
- 20 - "Continue to support and expedite the establishment of a single Community Patent through negotiations in Europe"
- 21 - "Government should support the London Agreement as an interim step towards COMPAT, and as an improvement in its own right"
- 22 - "Maintain a high quality of patents awarded by increasing the use of ‘section 21’ observations: streamlining procedures and raising awareness"
- 23 - "The Patent Office should conduct a pilot of Beth Noveck’s Community Patent Review in 2007 in the UK to determine whether this would have a positive impact on the quality of the patent stock"
- 24 - "The Patent Office should develop stronger links with universities and other research institutions, including through short placements, to ensure that IP examiners are aware of recent developments in technology.
- 25a - "Introduce accelerated grant process for patents to complement the accelerated examination and combined patent search and examination procedures"
- 25b - "Introduce fast track registration for trade marks"
Operations - Use
- 26 - "The Patent Office should provide comprehensive information on how to register and use IP rights for firms registering with Companies House.
- 27 - "Improve SME business IP support by establishing formal collaboration between the Patent Office and Business Link and by conducting a pilot replicating the French ‘IP Genesis’ scheme"
- 28 - "Investigate how best to provide practical IP advice to UK firms operating in foreign markets, in coordination with industry bodies, the Patent Office and UK Trade and Investment"
- 29 - "The Patent Office should develop ‘Business-to-Business’ model IP licences through industry consultation, and assessment of the Lambert model licences"
- 30a - "The Patent Office should publish and maintain an open standards web database, linked to the EPO’s esp@cenet web database, containing all patents issued under licence of right"
- 30b - "The Patent Office should publish and maintain an open standards web database, linked to esp@cenet containing all expired patents"
- 31 - The Department for Trade and Industry (DTI) should consider whether guidance for firms on reporting of intangible assets could be improved, including the provision of model IP reports"
- 32 - "Form a working group with Patent Office, RDA and Business Link representation, to identify and promote best practice to maximise the use of effective schemes nationwide"
- 33 - "The Review invites the OFT to consider conducting a market survey into the UK collecting societies to ensure the needs of all stakeholders are being met"
- 34 - "Increase cooperation between the UK Patent Office, the Office of Fair TradingOffice of Fair TradingThe Office of Fair Trading is a not-for-profit and non-ministerial government department of the United Kingdom, established by the Fair Trading Act 1973, which enforces both consumer protection and competition law, acting as the UK's economic regulator...
and the Competition CommissionCompetition CommissionThe Competition Commission is a non-departmental public body responsible for investigating mergers, markets and other enquiries related to regulated industries under competition law in the United Kingdom...
to ensure that competition and IP policy together foster competitive and innovative markets for the benefit of consumers"
Operations - Enforcement
- 35 - "The Patent Office should continue to raise public awareness, focussing in particular on the wider impacts of IP crime, and the exceptions to rights"
- 36 - "Match penalties for online and physical copyright infringement by amending section 107 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988The Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 , also known as the CDPA, is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom which received Royal Assent on 15 November 1988. It reformulates almost completely the statutory basis of copyright law in the United Kingdom, which had, until then, been...
by 2008" - 37 - "Monitor success of current measures to combat unfair competition in cases relating to IP, and if changes are found to be ineffective, Government should consult on appropriate changes"
- 38 - "DCA should review the issues raised in its forthcoming consultation paper on damages and seek further evidence to ensure that an effective and dissuasive system of damages exists for civil IP cases and that it is operating effectively. It should bring forward any proposals for change by the end of 2007"
- 39 - "Observe the industry agreement of protocols for sharing data between ISPs and rights holders to remove and disbar users engaged in ‘piracy’. If this has not proved operationally successful by the end of 2007, Government should consider whether to legislate"
- 40 - The Department for Trade and Insutry (DTI) should consult on measures to tighten regulation of occasional sales and markets by 2007"
- 41 - The UK Home Office should recognise IP crime as an area for Police action as a component of organised crime within the updated National Community Safety Plan.
- 42 - Give Trading StandardsTrading StandardsTrading Standards is the name given to local authority departments in the UK formerly known as Weights and Measures. These departments investigate commercial organisations that carry out trade in unethical ways or outside the scope of the law.-History:...
the power to enforce copyright infringementCopyright infringementCopyright infringement is the unauthorized or prohibited use of works under copyright, infringing the copyright holder's exclusive rights, such as the right to reproduce or perform the copyrighted work, or to make derivative works.- "Piracy" :...
by enacting section 107A of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 by 2007" - 43 - Strengthen Practice Directions, to provide greater encouragement for parties to mediate, in particular this should raise the profile of mediation with judges"
- 44 - "The Patent Office should consult with the Judicial Studies BoardJudicial Studies BoardThe Judicial College, formerly the Judicial Studies Board , established in 1979, is the organisation responsible for training judges in Crown, County and higher courts in England and Wales and tribunals judges in England & Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. This includes the training of lay...
to determine the extent to which the complexity of IP law may give rise to a training need for judges and magistrates and their legal advisers" - 45 - "Support the establishment of a single EU court to adjudicate cross-border IP disputes by promoting the European Patent Litigation AgreementEuropean Patent Litigation AgreementThe draft European Patent Litigation Agreement , or formally the Draft Agreement on the establishment of a European patent litigation system, is a proposed patent law agreement aimed at creating an "optional protocol to the European Patent Convention which would commit its signatory states to an...
"
Operations - Governance
- 46 - "Establish a new Strategic Advisory Board for IP policy (SABIP), covering the full range of IP rights, reporting to the minister responsible, by 2007. The Board should be drawn from a wide range of external experts as well as key senior policy officials from relevant government departments, and should be based in London. £150,000 should be allocated to fund the secretariat by the Patent Office"
- 47 - "The Patent Office should provide an annual IP strategic analysis fund of £500,000 managed by the policy advisory board in consultation with the IP Policy Directorate"
- 48 - "Patent Office should introduce a clear split of responsibility between delivery and policy directorates"
- 49 - "Encourage IP policy officials to obtain policy experience outside the IP Policy Branch, and support short industry placement schemes for policy staff"
- 50 - "Realign UK Patent Office administrative fees to cover costs more closely on Patent Office administrative operations (e.g. granting patents)"
- 51 - "Increase the transparency of Patent Office financial reporting"
- 52 - "Ensure that under current arrangements in the Patent Office, there is a clear internal separation of responsibility between the granting of rights and disputes over their ownership or validity. This should be achieved by clearly separating the line management structures"
- 53 - "Change the name of the UK Patent Office to the UK Intellectual Property Office (UKIPO) to reflect the breadth of functions the office has, and to dispel confusion"
- 54 - "DCA should review the issues raised in relation to IP cases and the fast track, and seek views in the context of its forthcoming consultation paper, which will consider the case track limits, and how the claims process can be made more timely, proportionate and cost-effective. It should bring forward any proposals for change by the end of 2007"
Private copying
The review coincided with a 2006 survey carried out on behalf of the National Consumer Council, which indicated that over half of British adults infringe copyright law by duplicating and rippingRipping
Ripping is the process of copying audio or video content to a hard disk, typically from removable media. The word is used to refer to all forms of media. Despite the name, neither the media nor the data is damaged after extraction....
music CDs. Following the review, in January 2008 the government initiated a public consultation period on proposals to legalise personal copying.
Copyright terms extension
On November 27, 2006, it was reported that Gowers would not recommend for the copyright termCopyright term
Copyright term is the length of time copyright subsists in a work before it passes into the public domain.- Length of copyright:Copyright subsists for a variety of lengths in different jurisdictions. The length of the term can depend on several factors, including the type of work Copyright term is...
of recorded music to be extended from the current 50 years after the date of recording. The British Phonographic Industry
British Phonographic Industry
The British Phonographic Industry is the British record industry's trade association.-Structure:Its membership comprises hundreds of music companies including all four "major" record companies , associate members such as manufacturers and distributors, and hundreds of independent music companies...
and prominent musicians, such as Cliff Richard
Cliff Richard
Sir Cliff Richard, OBE is a British pop singer, musician, performer, actor, and philanthropist who has sold over an estimated 250 million records worldwide....
and Ian Anderson
Ian Anderson (musician)
Ian Scott Anderson, MBE is a Scottish singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, best known for his work as the leader and flautist of British rock band Jethro Tull.-Early life:...
, had lobbied for an extension to 95 years, matching the length of copyright provided in the USA; other musicians, such as Dave Rowntree
Dave Rowntree
David Alexander De Horne Rowntree is an English solicitor, musician, animator, and political activist. He is best known as the drummer of the alternative rock band Blur...
of Blur
Blur (band)
Blur is an English alternative rock band. Formed in London in 1989 as Seymour, the group consists of singer Damon Albarn, guitarist Graham Coxon, bassist Alex James and drummer Dave Rowntree. Blur's debut album Leisure incorporated the sounds of Madchester and shoegazing...
provided counteropinions. The Gowers Review found that the UK, compared with the USA, suffers no apparent impediment to creativity due to this disparity. To coincide with the publication of the review on the 6 December a full-page advertisement entitled Fair play for musicians
Fair play for musicians
Fair play for musicians is a full-page advertisement that was published on 7 December 2006 in the Financial Times newspaper calling on the UK Government to extend the existing 50 years copyright protection for sound recordings in the United Kingdom. It consisted of around 4,500 names in small...
, was taken in the Financial Times of December 7, stating "We call upon the UK Government to support the extension of copyright on sound recordings", and was signed by over 4,500 musicians, including a few dead ones.
Repercussions
Richard Sargeant, a civil servant who wrote large amounts of the Review, was later hired by GoogleGoogle
Google Inc. is an American multinational public corporation invested in Internet search, cloud computing, and advertising technologies. Google hosts and develops a number of Internet-based services and products, and generates profit primarily from advertising through its AdWords program...
. In January 2009, as Google's "public policy manager", he called for reforms to incorporate exemptions similar to the United States' fair use
Fair use
Fair use is a limitation and exception to the exclusive right granted by copyright law to the author of a creative work. In United States copyright law, fair use is a doctrine that permits limited use of copyrighted material without acquiring permission from the rights holders...
doctrine into UK and Europe copyright law.
External links
- Gowers Review of Intellectual Property, official site on the website of HM TreasuryHM TreasuryHM Treasury, in full Her Majesty's Treasury, informally The Treasury, is the United Kingdom government department responsible for developing and executing the British government's public finance policy and economic policy...
- Gowers review of intellectual property, UK Intellectual Property Office
- Response to the Gowers Review of Intellectual Property, British AcademyBritish AcademyThe British Academy is the United Kingdom's national body for the humanities and the social sciences. Its purpose is to inspire, recognise and support excellence in the humanities and social sciences, throughout the UK and internationally, and to champion their role and value.It receives an annual...
, April 19, 2006, Open Rights GroupOpen Rights GroupThe Open Rights Group is a UK-based organisation that works to preserve digital rights and freedoms by campaigning on digital rights issues, acting as a media clearinghouse service putting journalists in touch with experts, and by fostering a community of grassroots activists...
press briefing, November 7, 2006 - Intellectual property rights to be reviewed in UK, The RegisterThe RegisterThe Register is a British technology news and opinion website. It was founded by John Lettice, Mike Magee and Ross Alderson in 1994 as a newsletter called "Chip Connection", initially as an email service...
(syndicated from OUT-LAW), December 5, 2005 - Copying own CDs 'should be legal', BBC News OnlineBBC News OnlineBBC News Online is the website of BBC News, the division of the BBC responsible for newsgathering and production. The website is the most popular news website in the United Kingdom and forms a major part of BBC Online ....
, October 29, 2006 - No copyright extension for songs, BBC News OnlineBBC News OnlineBBC News Online is the website of BBC News, the division of the BBC responsible for newsgathering and production. The website is the most popular news website in the United Kingdom and forms a major part of BBC Online ....
, November 27, 2006 - Musicians sign copyright advert, BBC News OnlineBBC News OnlineBBC News Online is the website of BBC News, the division of the BBC responsible for newsgathering and production. The website is the most popular news website in the United Kingdom and forms a major part of BBC Online ....
, December 7, 2006 - Sir Hugh Laddie's response to the Gowers Review, June 2007