Switzerland, the founding father of the BIRPI under Swiss law, joined the WIPO Convention at its inception in 1970. In addition to the country’s participation in 24 treaties and their respective unions, Switzerland is ex officio member of the WIPO Coordination Committee and of the Program and Budget Committee, of the Berne Union General Assembly and of the Paris Union Assembly as well as the respective sub-bodies (Executive Committees) as of 2020. The Coordination Committee and the Program and Budget Committee are two prominent bodies for the process of establishing programmes and plans for approval by the Assemblies. For many decades, the two audit officers were nominated by the Swiss Federal Finance Administration. As geographical representation of the membership broadened, this practice, probably stemming from the BIRPI era, was abandoned.
The term “revision” generally covers the substantive provisions and the final clause relating to eligibility to becoming party to a WIPO treaty. The procedure for revision pursuant to a diplomatic conference applies to the substantive provisions of the WIPO treaties, as well as to the final clauses dealing with eligibility to become party to the treaty and cognate matters. The term “amendment” relates to the provisions dealing the administration of those treaties, e.g. the provisions governing the Assembly of Member States, the International Bureau, and finances.
As of 2020 the WIPO has 193 members. A country may be a WIPO member without being a member of the Berne Union or the Paris Union, without any obligation to sign on to particular agreements such as the Berne and Paris Conventions, albeit the substantive provisions today are part of the TRIPS Agreement mandatory for all WTO Member States. WIPO membership is open to any member of the Paris Union, Berne Union, UN, a specialized agency of the UN or International Atomic Energy Agency, and to any party to the Statute of the International Court of Justice. It is also possible to become member of the organization upon invitation from the WIPO General Assembly. The fact is noteworthy that economies such as Taiwan have not been recognized by the UN and their specialized agencies, including the WIPO. To ensure protection of Swiss IP interests in Taiwan, Switzerland had to have recourse to complex bilateral reciprocity arrangements until that economy’s accession to the WTO.
Whilst there are some UN organizations which provide certain services or products against the payment of fees, WIPO is a unique case in that it is almost entirely self-financing. In its Program and Budget for 2020-21 biennium it has been estimated that overall income for the biennium will total over 880 million Swiss francs, with total expenditure of approximately 768 million Swiss francs. Nearly 95 percent of the WIPO’s overall income will come from fee-paid services the organization provides to users of the international systems of global protection, including particularly the PCT. To a small extent, activities are financed by contributions fixed according to a schedule of classes selectable by members states. Switzerland is in class III, which is not high, as compared to US, Germany or France, who are in class I. This system of classes does not drastically impact the UN-like voting system (one member, one vote). A recurrent question is whether members who do not pay contributions should be barred from voting and decision-taking. Overall, the PCT’s finances are exceptionally flourishing, and are used to attain other objectives, such as WIPO technical cooperation activities. Switzerland has generally supported an inclusive spill-over approach in favour of technical cooperation.