Sharjah International Book Fair 2011 granted a special spotlight in its agenda for raising public awareness on the importance of Intellectual Property Rights (IPR). Held yesterday in SIBF 2011, a seminar entitled “Intellectual Property Rights in Emirates,” headed by Mr. Mohammed Al Raisi, and attended by Maj. Gen. Dr. Abdul-Quddus Abdali, lawyer Nasser Al-Khasawneh and Mr. Jawad Al Redha head of government relations of intellectual property and business development.
At the beginning, participants spoke about the core of intellectual property rights, which is all the production of human thought of inventions, artistic creations and other outcomes of the human mind. Later, the World Intellectual Property Organization “WIPO” introduced the “Intellectual Property Rights” as the result of intellectual creativity of inventions, literary and artistic works and symbols, names, images and designs used in commerce.
Participants shed light on various kinds of intellectual property such as copyright, which covers the literary and artistic works from novels, poems, plays and musical acts, where the artistic works include oil paintings, photographs, sculptures and architectural designs. Additionally, the brands are all what takes a distinctive form of companies and institutions to familiarize the public with its products and distinguish them from other similar products. Furthermore, the industrial property “inventions”, that include a patent, is every innovation that leads to substantial progress in industrial art and provides vital protection by granting the formal legal certificate from the state.
Participants pointed out that intellectual property has a great role in encouraging creativity and innovation, attracting investment and achieving development, added to enhancing and supporting international trade. Moreover, participants interpreted the author’s literary copyrights, where the author shall have the rights of literary non-prescription or waiver of the workbook, in addition to his right to self-publish the work for the first time, and the right in the workbook’s share. Also, the right to object to any amendment to the workbook if it includes any distortion or deformation of the work or prejudices the rank of the author, plus the right to withdraw the work from circulation if any serious reasons occurred justify doing so. There are also financial rights which entitle the author alone the right to exploit his work financially in any way he deems appropriate.
On the other hand, some participants mentioned types and forms of violations of copyright and related rights, such as transgressing a right of the moral or financial rights of the author or right holder. These violations appear as sharing any work, performance, sound recording or a radio program with the public, and selling, leasing or offering for trading in any possible form. Furthermore, unlawfully manufacturing or importing a protected work, and using equipment or tools specifically designed to circumvent the protection or the technique used by the author or right holder. Nevertheless, some breaches come as illegally disabling or faultfinding the right of any technical protection, added to downloading and storing copies of any computer software, applications or databases, and finally using computer programs without prior authorization from the author or his successor.
In the event of any breach in any right of the intellectual property rights the aggrieved should visit & inform departments and institutions such as the Ministry of Economy, the Public Prosecution, the Attorney General, the Civil Justice, the Customs, local departments, the Department of Economic Development, and the municipality.
The Emirates Society for Intellectual Property is one of the major institutions that deal with this issue, and aims to raise awareness in society and individual for all areas of intellectual property, trying to improve the international rankings of the state in the field of intellectual property, its participation in related international and regional forums, added to strengthening international and community partnerships with ministries, agencies, local departments, and scientific research institutions in the fields of intellectual property.
