The Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf, originally known as the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), is a regional intergovernmental political and economic union consisting of Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

Historically, the Arab Gulf Cooperation states have been involved in the protection of intellectual property rights. This has been through the enactment of several national intellectual property legislations and their associated regulations. Further, the GCC states are also members of the World Trade Organisation (WTO) which has resulted in the unification of most of the intellectual property laws as the states have aimed to align their national laws with the requirements of the Trade Related Aspects of the Intellectual Property Rights Agreement (TRIPS).