[ArsTechnica] Sen. Wyden demands vote on American copyright, patent treaties

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Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR) is a long-time opponent of the secretly negotiated Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA). Today he introduced an amendment to a Senate « jobs bill » that would force ACTA to come before Congress for approval. A second amendment would make the US Trade Representative, which negotiates US trade deals, drop the veil of secrecy around its copyright and patent negotiations. […]

[…] The « next ACTA » is the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP), a regional trade deal involving countries from around the Pacific Rim. Wyden wants to ensure the public doesn’t have to rely on leaks to find out what’s being proposed in its name.

He proposes a rule that would force USTR to release any negotiating proposals already shared with other nations in the TPP talks if they apply to « intellectual property, the Internet, or entities that use the Internet, including electronic commerce. » […]

http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/news/2012/03/sen-wyden-demands-vote-on-american-copyright-patent-treaties.ars