Combinations of goods and services and their treatment under World Trade Organization (WTO) law.

Recent years have seen an increase in goods-related services. Such services range from conventional maintenance contracts sold with goods, to database and data processing services as necessary parts of the Internet of Things. Indeed, the Internet of Things has increasingly blurred the distinction between goods and services insofar as the latter enable essential functions of the goods. Services such as production related research and development (R&D) are also making an increasingly significant contribution to the final value of goods. On the other hand, the World Trade Organization (WTO) regulates the cross-border trade in goods and services separately in the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) and General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS). Therefore, it is legitimate to ask if this approach is now outdated and a new mode of trade should be created. This paper provides some thoughts on these questions and is based on the author’s dissertation which comprehensively deals with this topic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]