Press Ministry discusses in Washington questions of protection of intellectual property

Minister of the Press Mikhail Lesin held in Washington on Thursday a meeting with president of the U.S. Motion Picture Association Jack Valenti at which the questions of protection of intellectual property in Russia and of upholding the interests of Russian consumers were discussed.

As Mikhail Lesin told RIA Novosti, the meeting with the head of the association was constructive, and the American side recognized lawfulness of the raising by the Russian side of the question of transfer of production of cinema products on CDs onto Russia's territory, which will meet the Russian consumers' interests.

The U.S. Motion Picture Association, headed by Jack Valenti, is an influential organization representing the interests of seven major U.S. cinema companies in Washington. The Association is interested in a dialogue with the Russian side on the questions of protection of the intellectual property rights and of the struggle against piracy, and its stand is always taken into consideration by the U.S. president's administration.

An accord on continuing the regular Russian-U.S. contacts in this sphere was attained in the course of the Washington talks.

Lesin gave Valenti Premier Mikhail Kasyanov's proposal to visit Moscow early in December 2003.