This work examines the endeavours of the Arabian Peninsula States - namely the Gulf Cooperation Council member States of Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar Saudi Arabia and the UAE, as well as Jordan and Yemen as prospective GCC members - in establishing national intellectual property protection regimes which both meet their international treaty obligations and are also congruent with their domestic policy objectives. It uses the WTO's TRIPS Agreement of 1995 as the universal benchmark against which the region's laws are assessed. The challenges faced by the States in enforcing their intellectual property laws receive particular attention. Protecting Intellectual Property in the Arabian Peninsula considers the changing nature of the States' intellectual property laws since 1995. It argues that the decade immediately following the TRIPS Agreement was marked by a period of foreign forces shaping or influencing the character of the States' intellectual property legislative regimes, primarily through multilateral or bilateral trade-based agreements. The second and current decade, however, see a significant shift away from foreign influences and a move towards domestic and regional imperatives and initiatives taking over. The work also examines regional initiatives for the protection of traditional knowledge and cultural heritage, as areas of intellectual property which fall outside the parameters of the TRIPS Agreement, but which are of significant concern to the States and other developing countries, and to which they are giving increasing attention in terms of providing proper protection.

This work examines the endeavours of the Arabian Peninsula States - namely the Gulf Cooperation Council member States of Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar Saudi Arabia and the UAE, as well as Jordan and Yemen as prospective GCC members - in establishing national intellectual property protection regimes which both meet their international treaty obligations and are also congruent with their domestic policy objectives. It uses the WTO's TRIPS Agreement of 1995 as the universal benchmark against which the region's laws are assessed. The challenges faced by the States in enforcing their intellectual property laws receive particular attention. Protecting Intellectual Property in the Arabian Peninsula considers the changing nature of the States' intellectual property laws since 1995. It argues that the decade immediately following the TRIPS Agreement was marked by a period of foreign forces shaping or influencing the character of the States' intellectual property legislative regimes, primarily through multilateral or bilateral trade-based agreements. The second and current decade, however, see a significant shift away from foreign influences and a move towards domestic and regional imperatives and initiatives taking over. The work also examines regional initiatives for the protection of traditional knowledge and cultural heritage, as areas of intellectual property which fall outside the parameters of the TRIPS Agreement, but which are of significant concern to the States and other developing countries, and to which they are giving increasing attention in terms of providing proper protection.

This book examines the development of national legislative regimes for the protection of intellectual property rights in the Arabian Gulf states: Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Yemen. David Price analyses IP rights in these states in the context of WTO membership, and consequent compliance with the requirements of the WTO's TRIPS Agreement. The challenges of domestic enforcement of the states' IP laws receive critical attention. A particular focus of the book is on foreign forces which have shaped or influenced the character of the states' IP protection regimes. It includes commentary on the contribution of foreign states, the WTO and WIPO in the pre-TRIPS and TRIPS compliance stages, and the US bilateral trade strategy for pursuing IP protection standards that exceed those enshrined in TRIPS, and the impact of these forces upon the states' enforcement performance. The role of the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) and the Special 301 provisions as a powerful tool in the US' bilateral strategy receives particular attention. The intellectual property laws of these states have been developed virtually in the span of a single generation, and the process of change is continuing. As such, this book will interest practitioners both in and outside of the region, and those with an interest in intellectual property law, comparative law, Middle East legal systems and affairs, and international trade.

This book examines the development of national legislative regimes for the protection of intellectual property rights in the Arabian Gulf states: Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Yemen. David Price analyses IP rights in these states in the context of WTO membership, and consequent compliance with the requirements of the WTO 's TRIPS Agreement. The challenges of domestic enforcement of the states IP laws receive critical attention.

A particular focus of the book is on foreign forces which have shaped or influenced the character of the states IP protection regimes. It includes commentary on the contribution of foreign states, the WTO and WIPO in the pre-TRIPS and TRIPS compliance stages, and the US bilateral trade strategy for pursuing IP protection standards that exceed those enshrined in TRIPS, and the impact of these forces upon the states enforcement performance. The role of the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) and the Special 301 provisions as a powerful tool in the US bilateral strategy receives particular attention.

The intellectual property laws of these states have been developed virtually in the span of a single generation, and the process of change is continuing. As such, this book will interest practitioners both in and outside of the region, and those with an interest in intellectual property law, comparative law, Middle East legal systems and affairs, and international trade.