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Intellectual property rights violations are a big problem in Latin America. According to the Business Software Alliance (BSA) in Washington, D.C., which produces annual estimates of software piracy levels for individual countries worldwide, of every ten pieces of commercial software purchased in the region last year, six were illegal copies. This puts the region roughly in the middle of the global piracy spectrum. However, the attitude towards piracy is changing and piracy rates have been declining in the region.43
Source: Business Software Alliance, Sixth Anual BSA Global Piracy Study, May 2001
Source: Business Software Alliance, Sixth Anual BSA Global Piracy Study, May 2001
The Case of Costa Rica
At rank 22, Costa Rica is one of the top offenders of software piracy in the world. In the last six years there have been major improvements in the reduction of the piracy rate. However, the reduction has not led to a decrease in the retail revenue loss. On the contrary losses have increased dramatically from 1997 until 2000. The increase in the losses amount from prior years is due to the shift from cassette to CD-R piracy.43
Source of data: Business Software Alliance, Sixth Anual BSA Global Piracy Study, May 2001
Source of data: Business Software Alliance, Sixth Anual BSA Global Piracy Study, May 2001
Source: International Intellectual Property Alliance (IIPA), 2002 Special 301 Report: Costa Rica
Legal Framework
In 1982 the Costa Rican National Assembly passed the law known as "Derechos de Autor y Derechos Conexos No. 6683" (Copyright Law and Related Laws Number 6683) which sets civil and criminal sanctions for the violation of copyrights. This law was modified in 1994 to protect software programs and databases. According to the law, it is illegal to make or distribute software copies without the written authorization of the copyright holder and it is only allowed to make a single copy of the original program or database for backup purposes. In 2000 a law that diverges from TRIPS was passed. This law has had some important consequences which are mentioned below. 44,45
Costa Rica’s International Status
Costa Rica is a signatory of all major international agreements and conventions on trademarks, copyrights, and patent protection. Costa Rica became a member of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) in 1980. In 1999 the National Assembly ratified the WIPO Copyright Treaty and the Intellectual Property Owners Association (IPO) Performances and Phonograms Treaty.46
Intellectual Property Rights
Costa Rica's copyright law is generally adequate, but not uniformly enforced. Even though many elements of Costa Rica's intellectual property laws are compliant with TRIPS requirements, the country's criminal codes have certain weaknesses that limit effective deterrence of intellectual property crimes. In 2000, Costa Rica enacted a very harmful intellectual property law, “Ley de Procedimientos de Observancia de los Derechos de Propiedad Intelectual”, which diverges substantially from TRIPS requirements. Because of the law, the country was placed in the US Special 301 Priority Watch List in 2000 and has not been taken of it since. ( The list identifies nations that have failed to establish fair and effective legal protections outlined under international obligations for intellectual property rights). The Costa Rican Government recently has taken important steps to improve intellectual property protection, including increased raids on companies, the formation of an inter-governmental intellectual property rights commission, and the training of judges and prosecutors on intellectual property laws. U.S. companies and industry groups are sponsoring additional training sessions on intellectual property protection.46
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Source: International Intellectual Property Alliance (IIPA), 2002 Special 301 Report: Costa Rica
Piracy of satellite television transmissions by the domestic cable television industry has been curtailed, but some apartment buildings and hotels, particularly in areas not served by major cable service providers, continue to engage in satellite signal piracy. Unauthorized sound recordings, videos and computer software are also widespread, although much progress has been made in reducing such practices. Video piracy, for instance, has been significantly reduced in recent years.46
Patents
The Legislative Assembly ratified reforms to the Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property in 1995. The new patent law extended the term of protection for a patent from 12 to 20 years from the date of grant for all inventions, even those previously considered "in the public interest," which only had patent protection for as short as one year, a violation of the WTO Agreement on TRIPS. Nevertheless, problems remain for pharmaceutical companies seeking to protect the use of data submitted for regulatory approval, in that such data are not being protected from unfair commercial use by unauthorized third parties.46
Trademarks
Trademarks counterfeiting of well-known trademarks occurs frequently in Costa Rica. Legal recourse against these practices is available in Costa Rica, but may require protracted and costly litigation. The Costa Rican authorities have recently stepped up efforts to raid businesses and confiscate property, especially clothing, which is infringing on registered trademarks. However, Costa Rican authorities require that trademark owners post a 25 percent bond before enforcement officials will move to seize a shipment of counterfeit goods.46
Trade Secrets
Trade secrets are protected by the Constitution, by the Civil, Commercial, and Criminal Codes, and most specifically by the Trade Secrets Law 7975 of January 2000. Article 24 of the Constitution protects the confidentiality of communications, and Article 203 of the Penal Code stipulates jail terms as punishment for divulging trade, employment, and other secrets. The punishment is double for public servants.47
Digital Signatures
There are currently no laws in place regarding digital signatures. However, a law is currently being drafted. (Source: University of Costa Rica, Law School)48
ICANN Participation
Costa Rica is an ICANN participant. Name Registration is done through the ICANN representation in Costa Rica: Network Information Center (NIC) - Internet de Costa Rica. According to the norms mentioned in NIC - Internet de Costa Rica's Website, it is not allowed to register websites with names of existing brand names. Cyber-squatting is not possible because top level domains (such as .com and .net) cannot be registered in Costa Rica.12,49
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