Book Review Times Two: GI at the Crossroads of Trade, Development, and Culture and GI - Global and Local perspectives

From KatFriend Josey Bright we have a double review of recent books on Geographical Indications:

The old adage we often apply to buses was called to mind when this reviewer received not one but two books on Geographical Indications (GIs). Both books speak to the complex and controversial debates around the legal protections for  GI and will be of interest to readers already engaged in these debates, as well as to those seeking to find out more about this hot topic in international IP law.  

 ‘Geographical Indications: Global and Local perspectives’, is the ninth volume in the propriété intellectuelle- intellectual peoperty series, edited by Prof. Jacques de Werra and published by Schulthess. It is a collection of papers originally written for an IP law conference (the Journée de Droit de la Propriété Intellectuelle), which was held on the topic of GI at the University of Geneva in February 2016. This reviewer must confess that she was only able to read the contributions written in English.  These were the chapters that focused on GIs in the global arena and were consequently the contributions that concluded the book, presumably broadening the perspective from the European focus of the earlier chapters.

A contribution by the WTO's Antony Taubman discusses the complex international framework governing GI’s that has been created by a web of overlapping bilateral and multilateral trade agreements, the result being a lack of practical transparency in this area of international intellectual property law. Legal scholar Irene Calboli’s chapter discusses recent global developments with attention to the growing interest in GI protection in developing countries. Her contribution also questions the evolving definition of GI towards a reputational system that is less concerned with geographical accuracy.

‘Geographical Indications: Global and Local perspectives’ is available in paperback - full details here. ISBN: 978-3-7255-8622-6 Schulthess Publishing Series: Propriété intellectuelle - Intellectual Property, 9 RRP: 59.00 CHF plus delivery fees. Rupture factor: Low, a back-friendly 232 pages.

IPKat readers are offered a special price 53.00 CHF + Delivery 10.00 CHF: 63.00 CHF, please contact Mr. Detraz at the following address:patrick.detraz@schulthess.com.

‘Geographical Indications at the Crossroads of Trade, Development, and Culture’ is a recent Cambridge University Press publication (impressively available as Open Access), which is edited by Irene Calboli and Wee Loon Ng-Loy.

The book brings together the contributions of a number of renowned scholars to discuss the landscape of GI protection with a particular focus on the Asia-Pacific region; it is the first comprehensive guide to do so. It takes the GI debate beyond the traditional Old/New World dichotomy (and the wine and cheese wars) to investigate the approach to GIs in the Asia-Pacific region. It also looks at the role GIs play from a cultural perspective in these regions through a series of country specific case studies. Its stated aim is to provide contributions which will be useful to a large variety of stakeholders and which will stimulate further research into GI protection in Asia-Pacific.

The book is divided into four parts across 16 chapters. The first part provides an introduction to the contested framework of GI protection and discusses pros and potential cons. Irene Calboli introduces this part with a chapter that summarises how the nature, scope and enforcement of GI protections nationally and internationally is unsettled. She considers that the agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) is largely underpinned by western focused debates between pro-GI and GI-sceptic countries, and has not resolved these tensions.

The second part looks at the different systems of GI protection at international and national levels. An interesting contribution from Christopher Heath in Chapter 8 investigates how certain GIs in Asia would fare in Europe.

The third part takes a closer look at the actual value of GIs in specific countries in the Asia-Pacific region, and the opportunities GI affords for local and rural development. The fourth and final part views GI protection from the perspective of cultural preservation, and discusses the extent to which GI protection can assist the safeguarding of traditional knowledge and intangible cultural heritage.

‘Geographical Indications at the Crossroads of Trade, Development, and Culture’ is available in hardback or eBook, and as Open Access (e.g. free!) - full details here.  ISBN: 9781107166332, Cambridge University Press,  Hardback RRP: £85.00 Rupture factor: Medium, an impressive 570 pages.