US requests WTO action over Chinese piracy

US Trade Representative Susan Schwab announced that it had asked the WTO to take action against China over piracy, the Wall Street Journal reported. After three months of formal discussions between the US and China failed to deliver a mutually acceptable solution, Washington wants the WTO to step in on the grounds that Chinese law makes it easier for counterfeiters to operate. The US wants China to drop quantity thresholds, which are said to be so high that distributors of pirated US movies and software escape prosecution. It also wants tougher rules on copyright rules – the US claims that, under the current system, fake goods can be sold once the labels are removed – and an extension of copyright rules to cover material that has yet to be approved by Chinese censors. The US Trade Representative said its request would be dealt with at the August 31 meeting of the WTO's dispute settlement body.