Intellectual property right - Assignment Example

To a certain extent, it prevents the plethora of similar products. It helps an organization to remain unique in its own products. This paper discusses the necessity of Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) and how it provides good protection for traditional knowledge as well as patents. The Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) is an international agreement, administered by the World Trade Organization (WTO). It annotates minimum standards and guidelines for the various forms of intellectual property (IP) regulations, for nations who are signatories of the WTO.

TRIPS came into existence in 1994, through the negotiations in the final stages of the Uruguay Round of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), guaranteeing protection for many things. When the Uruguay Round concluded and the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS Agreement) was put into force in 1994 many believed that it is a step towards reaching a global solution for many product violation cases. (Alsegard 2004). Trips recommends all its signatory nations to follow and bring into effect the laws protecting intellectual property of various organizations, countries or individuals.

The signatories consist of 153 countries, which represents close to 95% of total world trade. These countries can be assured of, if or when they implement TRIPs, will be the avoidance of the economic and trade sanctions which industrialised countries would be entitled to impose under the terms of GATT. (McGrath 1996). There are certain standards which the nations laws should meet with regards to IP rights including: copyright rights, like the rights of performers including music artists, films, geographical indications, trademarks, etc, etc.

These standards are stipulated by the TRIPS. Hence the WTO’s TRIPS agreement aims to facilitate the protection of rights in a more efficient way and so that it can be