By Adam Ulick | September 26, 2007

The David vs. Goliath saga continues! After Antigua’s complaint and the WTO’s ruling, the US has finally made compensation offers to the affected countries, which include Antigua and Barbuda, China and the European Union. Unfortunately these offers have been generally viewed as insufficient.

For instance, Antigua was filing for $3.4 billion in damages, yet the US offered a measly $0,5 million on a submission to the WTO, which says according to the Antigua Sun: "The level of Antigua's nullification and impairment should be roughly $0.5 million, and certainly no greater than approximately $3 million per year in lost exports of gambling services." Antigua is not likely to accept this, and will continue to press for the right to take over US patents and other intellectual property rights.

The offer made to the EU has not been fully disclosed, but is said to include “opening opportunities in the storage, warehouse services and technical testing sectors to make up for the gaming restrictions” according to the Financial Times. This is unacceptable on two accounts: it does not make up for the estimated $4 billion a year that EU companies are no longer earning, and it is already being offered as part of an unrelated WTO negotiation.

European officials are being cautious: after negotiating a month to make a decision, all that has been released is "we are examining the value of the offer.It will be discussed at EU talks next week."

Antigua, on the other hand, is still optimistic and aggressive in its approach. Mark Mendel, Antigua’s WTO Attorney, declared to the Antigua Sun that "I think they are now coming to a recognition that they have a big problem with us, and I sense that they are beginning to realize that they need to come to some kind of agreeable solution. I am a little bit hopeful that we are getting their attention."

Stay tuned for further developments!

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