At a two-day seminar on the Collecting Management of Copyright and Related Rights organised by the Copyright Office of Vietnam (COV) and the EC-ASEAN Intellectual Property Rights Cooperation Programme (ECAP II), foreign experts have presented an overview of the Collecting Management of Copyright and Related Rights systems in Europe, Vietnam and other ASEAN members, as well as exchange experiences on current developments and challenges ahead.

Dr Vu Manh Chu, head of the COV stressed that the seminar was the first programme in the area of copyright with a special support cooperation programme between the EC and ASEAN members. The organisation of such seminars are a step towards accelerating the implementation of copyright protection, especially after the Vietnam Intellectual Property Law came into effect from July 1 this year.

At the international level, Vietnam has committed to the protection of these rights by joining important international conventions such as the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works and the International Convention for the Protection of Performers, Producers of Phonograms and Broadcasting Organisations.

Markus Cornaro, Ambassador-Head of the EC Delegation to Vietnam, said the EC was pleased with the cooperation process of the ECAP II and would be interested to continue to cooperate with Vietnam. The programme for Vietnam is expected to extend to next year, according to a member on the programme's management unit.