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China, Russia Top Piracy Watch List

By: Sherri L. Shaulis

Posted: 04/28/2008

WASHINGTON - China and Russia once again are at the top of the U.S. Trade Representative's "Priority Watch" list for issues related to pirated content.

The list is part of the U.S. Trade Representative's annual "Special 301" report, which addresses adequacy and effectiveness of intellectual-property protection from U.S. trade partners.

The list has changed little since 2007, but the U.S. Trade Representative noted that China and Russia have made some improvements since that time.

The report said AllOfMP3 (based in Russia) and Baidu (based in China) have created flourishing virtual markets for copyright infringement.

The report also mentioned The Pirate Bay, which is based in Sweden.
Other countries on the list include Argentina, Chile, India, Israel, Pakistan, Thailand and Venezuela.

The report listed 46 countries, including countries named on the "Regular Watch" list, a downgraded version of the "Priority Watch" list.
 
Officials said they arrested 4,322 people for piracy in 2007.

The "Special 301" report is often criticized for being too heavily influenced by U.S. business interests. The report lists "affected industry groups and other private-sector representatives" as a source of information.