| UNDERSTANDING PBR HOME > 3. THE REGULATORY FRAMEWORK > 3.9 EXEMPTIONS AND RESTRICTIONS > 3.9.4 PUBLIC ACCESS AND COMPULSORY LICENCES > Page 3.9.4 |
 3.9.4 Public Access and Compulsory Licences Innovation in plant breeding provides public as well as private benefits. For example, new varieties are created that are better suited to Australian conditions or to meet market needs. This leads to an efficient and competitive agricultural sector providing higher yields, using fewer pesticides and developing new and different products. Consumers and producers benefit and Plant Breeder's Rights provides a framework for the breeder to be rewarded. To ensure that the monopoly right provided to the grantee through PBR is still in the public interest, Section 19 of the PBR Act requires the grantee within two years of the grant of PBR to make sufficient quantities of the variety available to meet public demand. The grantee “must take all reasonable steps to ensure reasonable public access to that plant variety”. Reasonable public access to a plant variety covered by PBR is taken to be satisfied if propagating material of reasonable quality is available to the public at reasonable prices, or as gifts to the public, in sufficient quantities to meet demand. For the purpose of meeting public access requirements the Secretary can licence a person to grow and sell the variety for whatever time and under whatever conditions are deemed necessary – this is in effect a compulsory licence. Such a licence can be issued on the request of a person who thinks (and can demonstrate) that there is not reasonable public access and their interests are being affected. The grantee is given the opportunity to refute the claims and to demonstrate that the public access provisions are being met before a compulsory licence is issued. At June 2005 there had not been any compulsory licences issued. Click “More Info” for a Case Study showing the approach taken to compulsory licences by the PBR Controller in the United Kingdom in 2001. There is also the possibility that a person could take action, in the right circumstances, under the Trade Practices Act for anti-competitive behaviour – see Section 2.4.2 of this Guide .
LEARN MORE ABOUT PBR | USEFUL LINKS | FAQs (IP AUST WEB SITE) | FEEDBACK | DISCLAIMER |
