论WTO框架下文化产品国际贸易中的补贴规则——以信息技术发展为背景

On Subsidies Rules in Trade of Cultural Products under the WTO Regime

信息技术发展背景下,文化产品显著地朝着电子形式进化,且电子形式的货物与服务之间的界线渐趋模糊。由于WTO框架下货物与服务分类规则的缺失以及服务补贴规则的不完善,其成员针对残存货物因素的文化服务的补贴因为货物和服务贸易规则的重叠适用,会受到严格限制传统补贴类型的货物补贴规则的制约,被认为违反国民待遇原则。结合货物与服务分类规则的建立,成员方能在GATS具体承诺表中有效限制外国服务或服务提供者补贴方面的国民待遇。此外,本国服务的界定中可以纳入文化标准,以排除与补贴实施国缺乏文化方面归属关系的服务或服务提供者,从而使基于文化原因的补贴得以实施。

Under the background of information technology development, cultural products evolve remarkably into electronic form, and the boundary between goods in electronic form and services in that form becomes vague. Under the WTO regime, due to the absence of classification rules of goods and services,and incomplete subsidies rules of services, Members＇ subsidies on cultural services containing goods elements will be ruled by subsidies rules of goods which seriously restrict traditional subsidies. Such subsidies are considered to violate National Treatment（NT） principle of GATT. Only on the basis of classification rules of goods and services, can Members effectively restrict NT to foreign services and service providers by way of Schedule of Specific Commitments. In addition, cultural criteria in the definition of local services exclude those services or service providers which lack cultural connections with subsidies providers, which make feasible the implementation of subsidies based on cultural reasons.