E-commerce and IP laws: Re-shaping current E-commerce laws and policies in the Philippine setting to accommodate the protection of Intellectual Property rights

• Main Authors: Panaga, Anne Louise T., Sanger, Sanjeev J.
• Format: text
• Language: English
• Published: Animo Repository 2020
• Subjects: Electronic commerce—Law and legislation; Intellectual property; Intellectual property infringement—Law and legislation; Law
• Online Access: https://animorepository.dlsu.edu.ph/etdm_law/18
• Institution: De La Salle University

The researchers aim to answer the question of how to improve the protection of Intellectual Property rights in online commercial transactions and determine the responsibilities of online platforms to contribute in the prevention of infringement cases under their domain. Currently, the Philippines has only a number of laws which acknowledges the presence of the Internet as a continuously growing avenue for different kinds of transactions performed online, and there is no legislation which deals with online commercial transactions. More specifically, there is no law which gives focus on Intellectual Property rights that are being used online. There has been no set legislation which penalizes sellers who sell counterfeit goods bearing marks owned by legitimate IP rights owners. With this in mind, the researchers have looked to foreign laws and jurisprudence to look into possible ways in which the issue of infringement in online commercial transactions can be addressed. The researchers also looked into the commonly used website providers to determine whether, as online marketplaces, they are ensuring the proper facilitation of transactions under their domain. The thesis concludes that the best solution would be to invest in research and draft a competent legislation which will address all possible remedies that Intellectual Property rights holders can avail of in cases of infringement committed in online commercial platforms and determine the liabilities of all parties involved in an online transaction. In addition to this, the researchers recommend that online platforms should share in the responsibility of ensuring that infringement will not be committed in their domains.