US 2009 Trade Agenda Released
US President Barack Obama’s trade policy for 2009 is now available, and is available from the US Trade Representative website.
Intellectual Property Watch
Original news and analysis on international IP policy
Kaitlin Mara
GI Label Yet To Benefit Indian Farmers
The Kerala province of India earned two geographic indications, or product names associated with a particular place and characteristics, on rice varieties in November 2007. But, more than a year later, the farmers who grow those strains still have yet…
In Biotech Industry, Cash Flow Fears And Patent Questions
Patent reform, universal health care, and intellectual property rights protection of new health and environmental technologies are critical not only for the biotechnology industry but for improvements in public health, the president of the Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO) said Thursday.
Innovation Policy: The Balance Between Standards and Patent Regulation
By Georg Greve
Interconnectivity, commoditisation and increased reuse and recombination are key trends within the maturing information and communication technologies (ICT) industry that drive innovation and development. Harnessing the innovative and economic potential of the ICT sector depends on a variety of factors, including open innovation models, such as free software.
Business Lobby On IP, US Commerce Secretary Nominee
Gary Locke, the former governor of Washington State, is the latest pick of US President Obama for Commerce Secretary. The US Chamber of Commerce, a business lobby group based in Washington, DC, has reviewed his record on intellectual property. Posted…
Path Forward For UN-Led Internet Governance Forum Discussed
That there will be a future for the international Internet Governance Forum seems likely, though the form its future incarnation will take is not. Delegates to an open consultation on internet governance this week began to sort out some base modalities on how to evaluate the progress of the United Nations-led discussion venue, as a deadline approaches to decide whether and how the group will continue.
Enforcement, Creative R&D Financing Priority Issues For Public Health in 2009
The number and intensity of debates over the role of intellectual property rights in public health is set to increase in 2009.
New leadership and new mandates for key intergovernmental organisations implemented last year have created opportunity for change. And while old debates over the balance between IP rights and access to health products are not going away, this year will see more exploration at the intergovernmental level of different systems to stimulate innovation.
Pandemic Flu Vaccine Capacity Increasing, But Not Enough
Capacity to make vaccines needed to respond to pandemic influenza has increased 300 percent, according to collaborative study [pdf] by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the International Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers & Associations (IFPMA) released Tuesday. However, it has…
Industry Pushes For Biosimilars Approval Process; Some IGOs Take Notice
Key players in the biotechnology industry are leading an effort to obtain global approval processes for generic biological medicines, which experts say could provide cheaper access to costly but widely prescribed and promising treatments.
Questions On Social Content Ownership After Facebook Policy Changes
As the world becomes increasingly digitised, the question of who owns the uploaded pieces of people’s lives — their photographs, their missives to friends, their posted musings and blog entries — is clearly an issue capable of generating a lot…
Sri Lanka Seeks GI Protection For Ceylon Tea
The Sri Lanka Tea Board, will seek intellectual property protection for Ceylon tea (which takes its title from a former name of the island nation), according to a business news source from the country. Protection is sought under the World…
GlaxoSmithKline CEO Calls For Patent Pool
Andrew Witty, CEO of pharmaceutical company GlaxoSmithKline, said in a speech Friday at Harvard Medical School that GSK will contribute to a patent pool intended to increase innovation on medicines for neglected diseases. A Reuters story on the event is…