POLITICAL POINTS

Evening Star, Issue 22146, 28 September 1935, Page 11

POLITICAL POINTS

HEWt VERSION OF MEAT AGREEMENT PATENTS AND COPYRIGHT DANGERS [From Our Parliamentary Reporter.] WELLINGTON, September 27. A novel explanation of how New Zealand at the last moment managed to conclude the meat agreement with the English authorities was provided by Mr Stallworthy, the Democrat member for Eden, as one of his contributions _to the Budget debate. After criticising what he termed New Zealand’s delporable failure to follow up the Ottawa agreement by taking off at the earliest possible moment the 3 per cent, primage duty oh British imports, the member for Eden said he was not surprised that there had been no crowing about the meat agreements with Great Britain. “New Zealand received an extension of time in respect of meat until March, 193 G,” said Mr Stallworthy, “ and how is it that the Dominion has been given this breathing space? Is it* anything that the Government has done?” he asked, replying to his own query in the negative. Mr Stallworthy said that a few hours before the Minister of Finance left London there was no agreement. When the Prime Minister left London there was no agreement, and Mr Coates was in a quandary, so he wont to,somebody high up, and that person telephoned to Auckland and inquired whether there was any chance of a change of Govi eminent at the forthcoming election. ‘“The reply was ‘Yes’,” said Mr Stallworthy, “ and the person who was in a high position said ‘ that is all we want to know,’ and next day the agree-

meat was made. Another few months were given the New Zealand people to change the Government and the high exchange policy. That is the inner history of the agreement.” • ♦ # • The phenomenal rise in the number of inventions relating to telegraphy and telephony which the New Zealand Patents Office noted in 1934, has been maintained this year, according to the latest report. There were 306 patents recorded- under this head, compared with 313 in 1933, which was the peak year. Very interesting general reference is made by the commissioner to the worldwide tendency for patents to become “ interlocked.” This fundamental aspect of the matter, he states, is becoming increasingly important in these days of industrial aggregation, and particularly so at the present time in regard to the radio industry, in which considerable inventive commercial activity is manifest. “In this connection,” he continues, “it should be noted that in modern times there is an increasing tendency for certain classes of patents to become legally and industrially interlocked. Thus, we find that altnough news is ordinarily regarded as belonging to the domain of copyright, a strong effort was made at the International Conference for the Protection of Industrial Property, held in London in 1934, to have news included in the convention, as being a form of industrial property. On the other hand, persons interested in radio inventions are vitally interested in « proposal that may be made to the International Copyright Conference, 1936, to limit the right of local legislatures to regulate the conditions under which copyright material may he communicated to the general by radio. Further, we find inventors giving great attention to radio sound films, etc., by means of which copyright material is conveyed from the creator to the consumer. There is also a marked tendency for broadcasting inventions to pass into the hands of large combines, and for the owners of inventions to enhance the value of their monopolies by becoming the owners of the corelated copyright. There are, thus growing up various powerful groups whose interests in patents and copyright are almost inseparably interwoven. These interests, being purely commercial, do not invariably harmonise with the public interest.” „, , The commissioner finally suggests that care should be taken that monopolies granted to foster the public well-being are not allowed to defeat their own , ends by enriching private enterprise unduly at the expense of the State.