UN Guidelines

Consumers International is pleased to announce a new programme of research to support the amendments that we have developed to update the UN Guidelines for Consumer Protection for the digital age and to promote access to knowledge. This research, funded by a grant from IDRC, will establish a sound evidence base to help support advocacy for the adoption of the amendments, whilst also increasing the capacity of the global consumer movement, particularly in the global South, to engage in research-based advocacy to support policy changes at an international level.

A new international instrument on Access to Knowledge (A2K) could be in the wings, with the first public release of a draft set of proposed amendments to the United Nations Guidelines for Consumer Protection.  These forward-looking A2K provisions are the culmination of months of online and face-to-face collaboration by Consumers International members from around the world.

The draft A2K amendments are now officially open for broader public comment at http://A2Knetwork.org/guidelines.

Vilnius, Lithuania: At a United Nations (UN) Internet summit today, Consumers International (CI) announced plans to push for the amendment of the UN Guidelines for Consumer Protection, to include new safeguards for consumers of goods protected by copyright and patent laws.  Such goods include e-books, music, films, software, and the devices used for accessing these.