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Viewing cable 08WARSAW165, POLAND SEEKS TO BE EUROPEAN IPR LEADER

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Reference ID Created Released Classification Origin
08WARSAW165 2008-02-07 10:15 2011-08-24 00:00 UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY Embassy Warsaw
VZCZCXRO1587
PP RUEHAG RUEHDF RUEHIK RUEHLZ RUEHROV
DE RUEHWR #0165/01 0381015
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 071015Z FEB 08
FM AMEMBASSY WARSAW
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 5899
INFO RUCNMEM/EU MEMBER STATES
RUEHKW/AMCONSUL KRAKOW 1982
RUCPDOC/DEPT OF COMMERCE WASHINGTON DC
UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 WARSAW 000165 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE PASS TO USTR WMOORE 
COMMERCE FOR 4232/ITA/MAC/EUR/OECA/MROGERS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: ECON ITRD KIPR PL
SUBJECT: POLAND SEEKS TO BE EUROPEAN IPR LEADER 
 
REF: 07 WARSAW 407 
 
WARSAW 00000165  001.2 OF 002 
 
 
1.  (U)  Summary: Poland's Minister of Culture has ambitious 
plans to introduce cutting edge EU-wide legislation regarding 
intellectual property rights (IPR) during Poland's EU 
presidency in 2011.  The first step is an update to Polish 
legislation, at the end of 2008.  At the same time, a 
consensus supporting creation of specialized IPR courts seems 
to have formed within the Polish government, although many 
details remain to be worked out.  One already-enacted change 
to Polish law closed a loophole that blocked prosecution of 
downstream sellers of pirated goods.  Also, contacts report 
that the last Polish government's anti-corruption drive had 
positive effects in the Polish border guards, and that the 
technical competence of Polish police to handle IPR cases is 
on the rise.  End summary. 
 
------------------------------------- 
Minister of Culture's Ambitious Plans 
------------------------------------- 
 
2.  (SBU)  On January 30, Poland's Minister of Culture and 
National Heritage outlined for a Polish inter-agency group 
ambitious plans to lead Europe in increasing IPR protections. 
 Minister Bogdan Zdrojewski asked government agencies and 
stakeholders from the private sector to give the Ministry of 
Culture -- which has the lead on IRP issues within the Polish 
government -- proposals for needed legislative changes by 
April.  He said that passing a new IPR bill will be a 
priority for him during the second half of 2008.  Looking 
forward, in 2011 Zdrojewski wants to hold an international 
conference on IPR to showcase "modern solutions" for 
protecting IPR.  These efforts would culminate during 
Poland's EU presidency, in the second half of 2011, with a 
Polish push for new EU-wide legislation. 
 
--------------------------------------------- ----- 
Amendment to Industrial Property Law Having Effect 
--------------------------------------------- ----- 
 
3.  (SBU)  One very important change to Polish legislation 
has already been made.  In May 2005, the Polish Supreme Court 
ruled that the criminal penalties provided in Articles 305 
and 306 of the Industrial Property Law could only be applied 
to the first importer/producer of counterfeit goods (see 
ref).  Treating the decision as a "get out of jail free" 
card, some vendors went so far as to post copies of the 
decision on stands selling pirated goods.  In August 2007, an 
amendment that reworded Articles 305 and 306 entered into 
effect, closing the loophole.  Michal Siciarek, chairman of 
the AmCham's IPR Committee, told EconOff that, as a result, 
the number of infringement prosecutions has picked up. 
 
---------------------- 
Specialized IPR Courts 
---------------------- 
 
4.  (SBU)  Another reform idea already moving forward is the 
creation of specialized courts to handle IPR cases.  An 
initial draft of legislation to create such courts has been 
prepared by the Ministry of Justice, and circulated for 
comment among judges.  At the moment the proposal is bogged 
down because of an argument about how broad the jurisdiction 
of the specialized courts should be.  According to contacts 
at the Ministry of Justice and in the local patent bar, the 
Ministry of Justice would like to limit the court's 
competence to patents and trademarks, while the Patent Office 
and Ministry of Culture are pushing to also include 
copyrights, which would substantially increase the court's 
anticipated workload.  At the interagency meeting, the 
Minister of Culture committed to speak personally with the 
Minister of Justice, to get the legislation moving. 
 
5.  (SBU)  The noteworthy point is that the discussion is no 
longer about whether to create a specialized court at all. 
The regular courts remain congested.  Mariusz Kaczmarek, 
Director General of FOTA, a group representing film and 
audiovisual rightsholders, and Jan Baldyga, the anti-piracy 
coordinator for ZPAV, a group representing the recording 
industry, told EconOff that in major cities such as Warsaw a 
case may take three or four years to conclude.  Counsel for 
the Business Software Alliance (BSA) stated that they rarely 
file civil cases, as the criminal process more quickly leads 
to closing down a vendor selling pirated goods. 
 
--------------------------------------------- ----- 
Improvements in the Local Police And Border Guards 
 
WARSAW 00000165  002.2 OF 002 
 
 
--------------------------------------------- ----- 
 
6.  (SBU)  Adam Koniuszewski, Director of Corporate Affairs 
in Poland for Philip Morris, told EconOff that the attitude 
toward IPR protection in the government is "completely 
changed."  He noted that a few years ago border guards would 
auction off smuggled cigarettes that had been seized, but 
that sort  of thing no longer occurs.  The former PiS-led 
government's drive to root out corruption had a substantial 
effect, with a number of border guards being dismissed.  He 
believes the border guards are now somewhat understaffed, but 
those who remain are a distinct improvement.  Although he 
said motivation to protect IPR is still sometimes lacking 
among some officials, things are moving "in the right 
direction," albeit more slowly than might be wished. 
 
7.  (SBU)  Similarly, ZPAV's Baldyga and FOTA's Kaczmarek 
stated that the skills of local police teams dealing with 
internet piracy are increasing.  Contributing to this is a 
special manual that ZPAV and FOTA helped to draft, which has 
been posted on the website of the police school, is available 
to police in the field via the internet, and also has been 
distributed among prosecutors. 
HILLAS