The WTO's Agreement on Trade-related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) was concluded on 15 April 1994 as part of the Marrakesh Agreement Establishing the World Trade Organization. Whereas the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (the GATT), established in 1947, mainly dealt with trade in goods, the Uruguay Round of trade negotiations (1986-1994) led to the inclusion of TRIPS as a central pillar of the multilateral trading system.
The three decades since then have seen a transformation in how trade enables and disseminates knowledge and cultural work. Trade and intellectual property have become more and more intertwined.
The WTO's TRIPS Agreement eases the flow of this valuable form of international trade.
