Protection of Intellectual Property Rights In Relation to the Tourism Industry Services is one of the fastest growing economic sectors in the world. It accounts for two thirds of global output, one third of global employment and nearly 20% of global trade (www.wto.org). The tourism industry being part of the services sector has experienced continued growth and according to the World Trade Organization (WTO), its business volume equals or even surpasses that of oil exports, food products or automobiles (www.unwto.org). Moreover, it has become one of the major players in the international commerce and has evolved into a very dynamic boost to a developing country’s economy. It has helped in the industrialization of developing countries by producing economic and employment benefits in many related sectors like construction, agriculture, manufacturing, medical and telecommunications.
The growth described above has spread to both developing and industrialized countries. Lots of tourists visit one country to another with different purposes. They may be appealed by such niche markets like ecotourism which drives awareness in protecting and maintaining the environment allowing tourists to visit destinations where flora, fauna, and cultural heritage are the primary attractions; agro-tourism involves touring local farms to view the growing, harvesting, and processing of locally grown foods as well as sampling them on site or in local restaurants and cafes; a growing market is also for health tourism where the main objective is natural treatment through spas, where certain natural properties are known to exist in a particular location; another is the growing market of the so called “medical tourism” where the clients are offered a package around a specific medical treatment, including, for example, surrogate motherhood. (www.wipo.int)
The tourism industry indeed has contributed economic benefits but along with these are possibilities of exploitations where an urgent need in protecting the intellectual property rights of the host countries and enterprises is needed. Competition brought about by globalization for that matter has also negatively contributed to this dilemma. An example of which is on how tourism affects indigenous communities of the host countries. There is a threat called biopiracy that the expanding global tourism industry brings to indigenous communities (Pera, L.). Bio-prospecting and bio-piracy often happen under the guise of ecotourism. There are concerns about numerous “ecotourism” trips where scientists, tourists, students and researchers enter into forests to collect information about local plants and ecosystems, stealing biodiversity and, in some cases, attempting to patent life and the stealing of knowledge developed over centuries (Pera, L.).
In medical tourism which is also called medical travel, health tourism or global healthcare, “bio-piracy” is a problem. In India for example, some 100 doctors with the help of software engineers and patent examiners are putting together a 30-million-page electronic encyclopedia of India’s traditional medical knowledge, the first of its kind in the world. This ambitious $2m project, christened Traditional Knowledge Digital Library, will roll out an encyclopedia of the country’s traditional medicine in five languages – English, French, German, Japanese and Spanish – in an effort to stop people from claiming them as their own and patenting them. Indian scientists say the country has been a victim of what they describe as “bio-piracy” for a long time. As stated by Ajay Dua, a senior bureaucrat in the federal commerce ministry, “When we put out this encyclopedia in the public domain, no one will be able to claim that these medicines or therapies are their inventions. Till now, we have not done the needful to protect our traditional wealth”. (www.medinetindia.com)
On the international level, such concerns and several others are currently addressed by organized countries like that of the Tourism Working Group and the Intellectual Property Rights Experts Group of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC). Treaties and agreements are being reviewed and signed to further promote cooperation within the member countries. On the local level, provinces like Shanghai in China, legislated laws to protect intellectual property rights within its tourism industry. As stated in the Regulations of Shanghai Municipality on Tourism, Chapter I of the General Provisions, Article 46, Section 3, “The tourism operators and their employees shall not imitate registered trademarks, brand names or quality accreditation marks of other tourism operators or arbitrarily using titles of other tourism operators”. (www.asianlii.org)
Many countries then do recognize that protecting the intellectual property rights is a powerful tool for economic growth both locally or internationally. One country who has implemented it is the country of Jordan.
As reported by the International Property Institute (IIPI), “The adoption of stronger intellectual property protection is helping to transform Jordan into the leading knowledge economy in the region”. Laws consistent with the WTO Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) now protect trade secrets, plant varieties, and semiconductor chip designs in Jordan. Registration of copyrights, patents, and trademarks is required. Copyrights are registered at the National Library and patents are registered with the Registrar of Patents and Trademarks, both part of Jordan’s Ministry of Industry and Trade. Jordan has signed the Patent Cooperation Treaty and the protocol relating to the Madrid Agreement Concerning the Registration of Marks. Jordan has also acceded to the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) treaties on copyrights (WCT) and performances and phonographs (WPPT). (Holden , J.)
With this development in Jordan, its pharmaceutical sector has gained new export markets and has started to engage in innovative research. New health sectors, such as contract clinical research, have emerged, and health-sector employment has grown. Many Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Association of America (PhRMA) members have established or expanded their commercial activities in Amman, including American Home Products, Astra-Zeneca, Sanofi-Aventis, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Eli Lilly, GlaxoSmithKline, Janssen-Cilag, Merck Sharp & Dohme, Novartis, Organon, Roche, Pfizer, and Schering-Plough. (Holden, J.)
This eventually makes possible the rapid introduction of new pharmaceutical products in the region and clinical tests are also carried out. Jordan’s medical tourism sector (a term referring to people who travel to other regions or countries in search of health-care options). According to a recent IIPI report, medical tourism represents two-thirds of total tourism revenues in Jordan. The October 2004 report, Establishing Globally Competitive Pharmaceutical and Biotechnology Industries in Jordan, stressed that clinical trials are enhancing physician and hospital skills and, in the process, further enhancing economic growth in medical tourism. It said that a recent survey of patients identified medical expertise of physicians as the main reason medical tourists come to Jordan.
Competitiveness in the tourism industry has driven the intellectual property system to provide an exclusive right of exploitation and of preventing unauthorized third parties from benefiting from that right (Nanayakkara, T.). The tools of the intellectual property system namely branding, trademarks, geographical indications (GI), industrial designs, patents and copyrights are amply applicable to the tourism industry.
To attract more visitors, branding is used by advertising agencies and the government of the country of destination to market it effectively. This tool can be effectively used to market a destination, its agricultural products, natural and historic sights and all its business services. “Destination branding” has its core a trademark, whether by virtue of a registered logo or tagline. Creating a logo or a tagline for trademark purposes must be registered on the regional and national level and depending on its scope, it should also be registered internationally. Example of a registered trademark is that of India’s “Kerala – Gods Own Country”. (Nanayakkara, T.)
Unifying a tourism sector in a region under one banner can allow third parties to benefit from the reputation of a particular trademark. “Tourism Australia” of Australia’s government has a trademark “™ Trade Mark of Tourism Australia”. This trademark can be used by third parties on their products, goods and services. Any applicant of the said trademark is obliged to provide every example of the way the mark is intended to be used and in every situation in which it is used, including that it should not be used in situations likely to damage the reputation of Tourism Australia (Nanayakkara, T.).
With intellectual property rights, a country or a particular business engaged in tourism can increase its revenue. An owner of a trademark, collective mark, certification mark, design right, copyright, etc may grant others the right to use the mark, design right or copyright, subject to certain conditions in exchange for a fee. This applies to franchising wherein the owner of a business gives another person the right to operate the same business model or system applying its trademark and all other relevant intellectual properties like certifications. In the hotel industry which is a vital portion of the tourism sector, Hotel Hilton, a well known brand name of a hotel, is a franchised business (www.hiltonfranchise). All aspects of its operations and management are copyrighted. This also applies to merchandising which is a specialized form of intellectual property licensing allowing an owner of an intellectual property right, trademark in general, a copyright or an industrial design to be marked on various products or consumer goods enhancing their appeal to the buying tourists whether locally or internationally.
Certifications granted by certifying bodies either a profit or non-profit organization can give a competitive edge or value to different enterprises within the tourism sector. These certifying entities can lend their logo once an enterprise passes their criteria. Examples of certificate marks used in the industry are the fair trade logo of South Africa, and the Green Globe Certification logo. If an entity complies to the criteria of fair trade such as fair wages and working conditions, fair operations and purchasing, fair distribution of benefits,· ethical business practice and respect for human rights, culture and environment, the entity is certified and has the right to apply the trademark of fair trade logo of South Africa. Green Globe on the other hand, is a global “eco-tourism label” that promotes sustainable tourism. Once granted or certified, the entity or region enhances its competitive strength, as it communicates that it is recognized of having good environmental practices and standards, sending a very important message to potential environment conscious customers.
Belonging to an association can ensure recognition and appeal. This is where collective marks as an intellectual property right tool can be very useful. “Logis de France” is a registered trademark of the Fédération Nationale des Logis de France, which is an association of independent hoteliers bound together with the objective of promoting privately owned hotels in a rural setting grouped under the same label. By attaching a label and by enforcing strict compliance of the criteria that the hotels need to adhere to, they have not only prevented the abandonment of the rural areas but have created a new product with added value. If not for the now widely recognized and respected trademark these individual establishments would not be able to effectively compete in the highly competitive service market. (Nanayakkara, T.)
Geographical indications have become an engine of growth of agri-tourism by strengthening tourism in rural areas where the focus is agriculture. They may reside within an umbrella brand applicable to a whole region or they may be an independent and stand alone brand which is the destination brand (Nanayakkara, T.). Geographical indications are understood by consumers to denote the origin and the quality of products. Many of them have acquired valuable reputations which, if not adequately protected, may be misrepresented by dishonest commercial operators. False use of geographical indications by unauthorized parties is detrimental to consumers and legitimate producers. Consumers are deceived into believing that they are buying a genuine product with specific qualities and characteristics, when they are in fact getting an imitation. Legitimate producers are deprived of valuable business and the established reputation of their products is damaged.
It is therefore concluded that the intellectual property system, which consists tools like branding, trademarks, geographical indications (GI), industrial designs, patents and copyrights, is very helpful and is benefiting the tourism industry. They do need protection in accordance with international treaties and national laws under a wide range of concepts, including:
special laws for the protection of geographical indications or appellations of origin
trademark laws in the form of collective marks or certification marks
laws against unfair competition
consumer protection laws, or
specific laws or decrees that recognize individual geographical indications.
With applicable sanctions ranging from court injunctions preventing the unauthorized use to the payment of damages and fines or, in serious cases, imprisonment.
Indeed, protection of Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) is important to an economy whether developing or developed as it encourages creativity and innovation.
References
“Services: Rules for Growth and Investment”. Retrieved July 29, 2009
http://www.wto.org/english/thewto_e/whatis_e/tif_e/agrm6_e.htm
“Tourism – An Economic and Social Phenomenon”. Retrieved July 29, 2009
http://www.unwto.org/aboutwto/why/en/why.php?op=1
Nanayakkara, T. “Role of Intellectual Property in Enhancing the Competitiveness of the Tourism Industry”. Retrieved July 29, 2009. http://www.wipo.int/sme/en/documents/tourism_ip.html#3
www.hiltonfranchise.com
Pera, L., Mc Laren, D. (Nov. 1999) “Globalization, Tourism & Indigenous Peoples:
What You Should Know About the World’s Largest Industry”. Retrieved July 29, 2009. http://www.planeta.com/planeta/99/1199globalizationrt.html
“India Hits Back In ‘Bio-piracy’ Battle” (BBC news /Dec.06). Retrieved July 29, 2009. http://www.medinetindia.com/news.php?n_id=42
“Regulations of Shanghai Municipality on Tourism”. Retrieved July 29, 2009. http://www.asianlii.org/cn/legis/sh/laws/rosmot483/
Holden, J. “Pharmaceutical sector, economy thrives after reforms in Jordan”. (April 22, 2008). Retrieved July 30, 2009. http://www.america.gov/st/business-english/2008/April/20080429215159myleen0.5241358.html
