U.S. copyright waived in tiny nation

December 25, 2007 The Caribbean nation of Antigua and Barbuda has won the right to waive U.S. copyrights in films, television and music under an unusual ruling by the World Trade Organization. The landmark decision by the Geneva-based trade watchdog means that the tiny islands are able to violate intellectual property protection worth up to $21 million as part of a dispute between the countries over online gambling. The ruling ends a legal battle lasting nearly five years, which ended in the WTO finding that Washington had wrongly blocked online gambling operators on the island from the American market at the same time it allowed online wagering on horse racing.

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