Australians could be forced to pay more for medicines, movies, computer games and software, and see whistleblowers and journalists prosecuted for revealing business secrets, according to secret trade negotiations released by WikiLeaks. 

The anti-secrecy website has published a new draft chapter of the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) free trade agreement that reveals the confidential negotiating positions of 12 countries – including Australia – on copyright, patents and other intellectual property issues.  

The leaked treaty text shows that in an effort to deal with "unfair competition", largely from Chinese industrial espionage, the United States has pushed ahead with proposals to criminalise disclosure of trade secrets across the Pacific Rim. 

The draft text provides that TPP countries will introduce criminal penalties for unauthorised access to, misappropriation or disclosure of trade secrets, defined as information that has commercial value because it is secret, by any person using a computer system.  

For more details, go to: http://www.smh.com.au/national/australians-may-pay-more-for-medicines-under-trade-deal-20141016-1175a2.html?eid=email:nnn-13omn656-ret_newsl-membereng:nnn-04/11/2013-news_am-dom-news-nnn-smh-u&campaign_code=13INO010&et_bid=21626737&promote_channel=edmail&mbnr=NDk5MDMw