PRO-IP Bill Passes, Minus Provision

In mid-October, President Bush signed into law the Prioritizing Resources and Organization for Intellectual Property (PRO-IP) Act, without the controversial provisions that were initially found in the House bill. PIA lobbied vigorously against the Section 104 provisions, which would have modified the so-called “one-work rule,” which stipulates that compilations of material are considered a single work when calculating damages from intellectual property infringement. Section 104 would have allowed for damages for each separate work in a compilation, possibly increasing damages by 10 times or more.

Printers can be found liable for intellectual property damages even when the violation is inadvertent, so it is crucial to ensure that damages be limited. PIA worked closely with House and Senate staff to explain how printers would be harmed by such radical changes. The association lobbied successfully to have the section removed in the House IP subcommittee and to ensure it was kept out of the bill.

Stay tuned to gain.net for more up-to-date info on this and other issues critical to the printing industry.