Ukraine has made a notable advancement in safeguarding intellectual property rights by becoming a member of the WIPO ALERT platform and initiating a blacklist for websites infringing these rights.
In alignment with its global commitments to intellectual property rights protection, Ukraine has been officially announced as a participant in the WIPO ALERT initiative, a global platform facilitated by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), as reported by the Ministry of Economy.
Joining a coalition of 14 countries, Ukraine now plays a pivotal role in curating a list of websites that violate intellectual property rights.
The Ministry of Economy’s announcement highlights Ukraine’s involvement in the WIPO ALERT international platform (World Intellectual Property Organization), marking its active participation in compiling a database of websites infringing on intellectual property rights.
Ukraine stands out as one of the pioneering nations to adopt this initiative comprehensively through a secure online platform, allowing authorized state members of the World Intellectual Property Organization to report websites and applications infringing copyright, in accordance with national regulations. This statement was attributed to First Deputy Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko in a press release.
The Ministry of Economy has formalized the procedure for compiling and managing a national registry of websites suspected of violating intellectual property rights, effective from March 21, 2024.
This initiative facilitates the submission by signatory members of detailed reports on websites and mobile applications under suspicion of infringing intellectual property rights to a central database.
A primary objective of this platform is to deter the placement of advertisements on infringing websites, targeting advertising agencies and business sectors.
The State Intellectual Property Service specifies that the establishment of this national registry is governed by Article 8 of the Ukrainian Law “On Advertising,” which prescribes administrative penalties for advertising on listed infringing sites.
Ukraine began contributing to this database in 2021, with the inclusion of four streaming platforms: rezka.ag, ex-fs.net, seasonvar.ru, and kinogo.zone.
The Motion Picture Association reports that the profitability of pirated content providers can reach up to 90%, with the US economy suffering losses of approximately $30 billion annually due to streaming piracy, and the global economy facing a total loss of about $71 billion.
IPR GROUP wholly endorses this initiative, applauding Ukraine’s direction towards enhanced copyright protection. We view the strengthening of intellectual property rights as crucial for fostering innovation and creativity.
