Singapore and the U.S. agreed on intellectual property (IP) standards above their commitments under the WTO Agreement on Trade Related Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS).  The underlying mutual impetus was increasing knowledge and competitive advantage and innovation and capability in the creative industries, information technology (IT), pharmaceutical, science and other high-technology industries.

As at date, Singapore has duly implemented all her commitments into the IP regime, and they are reflected in Singapore's current legal provisions.

Key commitments for each genre of IP are as follows:

Firstly, in the field of copyright and related rights:

i.	Increased duration of copyright protection for a copyright work;
ii.	Entrenched IP protection in the digital, e-commerce and Internet environment via accession to the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) 'Internet Treaties' viz. the WIPO Copyright Treaty (WCT) and the WIPO Performances and Phonograms Treaty (WPPT);
iii.	Clarified that an IP rights owner's control over his copyright materials extends to temporary and transient copies and to interactive and other transmission modes;
iv.	Prohibition on tampering with the technology protection measures ('TPMs") (e.g.: embedded codes on discs), and rights management information ('RMIs') (e.g.: watermarks and digital signatures) used by an IP rights owner on his copyright materials;
v.	Protection for television signals by prohibiting unauthorized retransmission or compulsory licence; protecting encrypted programme-carrying satellite signals, and prohibiting unauthorized reception and re-distribution and manufacture or distribution of devices to intercept them;
vi.	Clarified liability of a network service provider (NSP) for infringing copyright materials hosted on its servers, and safe harbour (immunity) in exchange for the NSP's compliance with notification and take-down procedures, and
vii.	Regulation of optical disc manufacturing by stipulating licensed manufacturers mark products with manufacturers codes, and prohibiting production without source identification codes, unless specifically authorised.

Secondly, in the field of trademarks:

i.	Expanded the scope of range of marks that can be registered to cover non-visual marks e.g. sound and scent marks;
ii.	Dispensed requirement that trademark licensee must register its licence to assert rights to a trademark in Singapore, and
iii.	Expanded protection available to owner of 'well-known' trademark to cover dissimilar goods and services, whether registered or not.

Next, in the field of patents and related rights:

i.	Expanded registration eligibility to extend to all plants and animals, enhancing the scope of biotechnology products/ inventions;
ii.	Established patent term adjustment to compensate for any delay faced by owners in issuance of the patent grant;
iii.	Limited the use of compulsory licences; and
iv.	Expanded protection for pharmaceutical and agricultural chemical products, including a period of data protection exclusivity for test data and trade secrets submitted for product approval, and extension of patent term due to delay in grant of approval from the marketing authority.

In addition, in the field of IP enforcement, the range of commitments relate to:

i.	Ensuring adequate anti-piracy enforcement resources;
ii.	Enhanced civil and administrative procedure and remedies, such as providing an IP right owner in a civil infringement suit the option of statutory damages, and facilitating ex-officio border action by government officials against IP infringements.
iii.	Enhanced criminal penalties for willful infringement occurring either in a commercial context, or where the scope is substantial.

These provisions allow Singapore to rank, with her increased standards of IP protection and enforcement, as a true safe haven in Asia, poised to attract greater foreign investment and trade in key industries.