Trade groups representing intellectual property rights holders are telling the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office that secondary trademark infringement liability has not been effective in getting e-commerce platforms to police themselves, and several said Congress needs to define the parameters of this doctrine by passing a law.
It will be easier to bring a labor case under the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement than it was in previous trade deals, but several particulars remain undisclosed. There will be expedited labor enforcement that “provides for facility-based enforcement,” and if independent labor experts find that collective bargaining rights weren't honored at particular factories, it will “lead to penalties,” a summary of the changes to USMCA says. But what those penalties are is not mentioned, and members of the House Ways and Means Committee and Senate Finance Committee said they don't know what they are, as no other details beyond the memo have been shared. A Ways and Means spokeswoman and trade staffer did not answer questions.
The Toy Association says the same safe-harbor law that protects YouTube for not preventing copyright infringement on that site should not apply to physical goods. The comments were filed in response to Commerce's request for input on the subject as it prepares a report for the president (see 1907080030). The association argues that the issues are more urgent, because counterfeit toys have not undergone safety testing, and that an online seller has more knowledge about its sellers' products than companies combing through listings do. They said "even the simple addition of proactive text filters can prevent thousands of listings every month."
The Internet Association (IA) called on the House Ways and Means and Senate Finance Committees to take on copyright issues within trade legislation in a Jan. 14 letter (here) to committee leaders. The group, which includes Amazon, Facebook and Paypal, said that copyright “limitations and exceptions” should be included in the Trade Promotion Authority legislation and asked for liability protections for Internet intermediaries.