Intellectual Property Forms for Art and Crafts Sectors: Investigating PACI’s Tools of Protecting Omani Crafts

Protecting intellectual property of the intangible values associated with traditional crafts objects, has received the most attention in international contexts (e.g. UNESCO, WIPO etc.) and in national (e.g. Oman: Ministry of Commerce and Industry, the PACIetc.) instruments, but these instruments (protection tools), need deeper investigation to identify the tools that are more appropriate to Omani cultural, social and economic circumstances regarding traditional craftsmanship. As established in the found data, the need to develop crafts people’s awareness about intellectual property (IP), became an essential element toward developing the crafts industry in general. This research would have been more relevant if an applicable intellectual property protection forms had been explored and investigated within Omani crafts case.