Special 301 Report:
India has yet again been placed on the ‘priority watch’ list of the US Trade Representative (USTR) office’s Special 301 Report on Intellectual Property Rights
- It is an annual report by the United States Trade Representative (USTR) under the Trade Act of 1974.
- It identifies countries that are considered by the US as not providing adequate and effective protection of Intellectual Property Rights (IPRs) or fair and equitable market access to IP rights holders from the US.
- The report has been issued every year since 1989.
- It designates countries as “priority foreign country”, “priority watch country”, and “watch list country”.
- Designation as a priority foreign country initiates an investigation and possible application of sanctions on the foreign country, while designation on a Priority Watchlist suggests serious IPR deficiencies that require greater US attention.
- Other countries that are considered to have serious IPR deficiencies but are not designated for greater US attention are placed on a Watchlist.
- The report includes both developed and developing countries.
