WTO Members Agree To Expand ITA, Drawing Praise From Tech Groups

World Trade Organization members cemented an agreement to expand the Information Technology Agreement, allowing implementation planning to begin, the WTO said in a news release Friday. The agreement, which was expected (see 1507200036), calls for the majority of tariffs to be eliminated on a number of products, including innovative semiconductors, within three years, the WTO said. The reductions are to begin in 2016, it said. The agreement also contains a commitment to keep the list of products covered under review to determine whether further expansion may be needed due to future technological developments, the WTO said: "By the end of October 2015, each of the participating members will submit to the other participants a draft schedule which spells out how the terms of the agreement would be met. Participants will spend the coming months preparing and verifying these schedules." The WTO hopes to finish the technical work in time for the Nairobi Ministerial Conference in December, it said. Tech groups continued backing ITA expansion, in statements Friday. The revised agreement eliminates tariffs on about $1 trillion in annual global sales of tech products, more than $100 billion worth of which are from U.S. companies, the Information Technology Industry Council said. The historic pact "is game changing for the technology sector," CEO Dean Garfield said. The group said ITA will phase out more than 200 tariffs on technology products, including GPS devices, videogame consoles and software. Forty-nine of 54 participating countries have signed the agreement and the other nations likely will soon, the Telecommunications Industry Association said. It's "a major victory for the tech sector," TIA CEO Scott Belcher said.