SRI LANKA Trends and Developments Contributed by: Anomi Wanigasekera, Charuni Hewage and Sabeera Shariff, Julius & Creasy
The WIPO Copyright Treaty Sri Lanka has also ratified the WIPO Copyright Trea - ty (WCT), which is administered by the WIPO and addresses the protection of works and the rights of their creators in the digital sphere. Under this treaty, apart from the rights bestowed by the Berne Con - vention, certain economic rights are also recognised. This treaty extends protection to two additional areas including computer programs and databases, irre - spective of the mode or form of expression. The Marrakesh Treaty In 2021, the Sri Lanka government ratified the Mar - rakesh Treaty, which enables people who are blind, visually impaired or otherwise print-disabled to access published works. This implies that, provided the use is by non-commercial organisations such as libraries, educational institutions are allowed to produce and distribute accessible versions of copyrighted work such as in braille, large print and audio-electronic for - mats, without requesting consent from the copyright holders. This would promote inclusivity and empower people with special needs to engage and function more in society. Sri Lanka has demonstrated its com - mitment to global human rights norms by ratifying the Marrakesh Treaty, particularly in guaranteeing equal access to knowledge and cultural involvement regard - less of limitations. The Rome Convention The TRIPS Agreement contains certain responsibilities as regards the protection of related rights, including the necessity to comply with substantial provisions of the Rome Convention for the protection of performers, producers of phonograms and broadcasting organi - sations. Within the domestic legal framework, Sri Lanka is bound by these international instruments to safeguard the trade marks and copyright-related rights of the nationals of all member countries. Correspondingly, citizens of Sri Lanka are also entitled to the protec - tion of their rights under the national laws of those member nations. Trade Marks in Sri Lanka The IP Act, as amended, regulates registration, pro - tection and enforcement of trade marks in Sri Lanka.
The Act follows the Nice Classification System, con - sisting of 45 classes where 34 are in respect of goods and 11 of services. Through registration of a mark, the exclusive rights to the mark can be obtained. The prior use of a trade mark is not a prerequisite for trade mark registration in Sri Lanka. Any person/body of persons, corporate and unincorporated, who claims to be the proprietor of a trade mark can file an appli - cation for its mark in respect of the goods/services desired. Upon registration of a trade mark, the owner of the trade mark gets the following key benefits: • legal protection and exclusive rights over the regis - tered trade mark; • brand recognition and consumer trust; • investment in the business value; • both national and global protection; • strong legal standing at any dispute over trade mark ownership or the use of the mark; • ability to renew indefinitely every ten years; and • customs and border protection, preventing imports of counterfeit products. While unregistered trade marks may receive limited protection under unfair competition law and the com - mon law doctrine of passing off, registered marks Awareness of trade marks and IP protections has sig - nificantly increased as Sri Lanka moves closer to the global economy. Both domestic and international cor - porations are increasingly realising how crucial trade mark registration is in protecting their brand identifi - cation: • globalisation – businesses are more likely to seek international trade mark protection as a result of Sri Lanka’s increased involvement in international trade and exports; and • the rise of e-commerce – e-commerce and online businesses are booming, leading to greater recog - nition of the importance of brand protection online. enjoy significantly stronger rights. Trends in Trade Marks in Sri Lanka Awareness of IP rights
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