Cory Doctorow brings word of this fascinating result in an Antiguan trade case:
Antigua has won the right to pirate $21 million worth of US copyrights in the World Trade Court, because the US violated the World Trade Organization agreement when it banned Antiguan Internet casinos.
There will be some fascinating valuation and choice of law issues involved here:
By pressing its claim, trade lawyers said, Antigua could set a precedent for other countries to sue the United States for unfair trade practices, potentially opening the door to electronic piracy . . . around the world.
“Even if Antigua goes ahead with an act of piracy or the refusal to allow the registration of a trademark, the question still remains of how much that act is worth,†said Brendan McGivern, a trade lawyer with White & Case in Geneva.
“The Antiguans could say that’s worth $50,000, and then the U.S. might say that’s worth $5 million.†He predicted that “the U.S. is going to dog them on every step of the way.â€
I’ve always found the valuation of IP an interesting topic; I hope to look into how Antiguan remedies for infringement stack up against U.S. ones.