Mercosur-EU Free Trade Agreement: A Bad Deal for the Public Domain

[Jorge Gemetto, Communia Association, Link, (CC-0)] ... A few weeks ago, Greenpeace Netherlands leaked a new draft of the Mercosur-EU FTA, apparently from July 2017, which includes the IP chapter. This new draft of the IP chapter shows the huge number of areas where there is a lack of agreement between Mercosur and the European Union. In the section devoted to copyright, the consolidated text (meaning those areas agreed upon by both parties) is only a small fraction. The rest consists of proposals and counterproposals from both parties. It is easy to see that, while the interest of the European Union is to increase the terms and scope of IP protection, as well as to impose new penalties on infringement, Mercosur countries seek to avoid higher IP standards, incorporate mandatory limitations and exceptions to copyright, and favor the identification and protection of the public domain.