USPTO Deputy Director To Leave Next Month
The United States Patent and Trademark Office today announced that USPTO Deputy Director Sharon Barner will leave office on 14 January.
Intellectual Property Watch
Original news and analysis on international IP policy
William New
US Ambassador In Geneva Defends Secrecy In UN Pandemics Negotiations
The United States Ambassador to the United Nations in Geneva this week offered a frank assessment of the UN system of dealing with pandemic diseases, and defended the need for governments to negotiate in secret to work out remaining differences.
WIPO’s Gurry Says ‘Crisis In Multilateralism’ Bringing Changes To IP
The rapid pace of technology and dramatic shifts in the global economy will bring change to the multilateral structure set up after the Second World War, and these changes will affect the intellectual property system, World Intellectual Property Organization Director General Francis Gurry said this week.
Calls At UN For An International Body To Prevent Internet Control
Opinions were divided in a United Nations consultation yesterday in New York on enhanced cooperation of public policy issues pertaining to the internet, whether two bodies on the issue are needed.
US Online Counterfeit Crackdown Raises Global Policy Questions
In a move aimed to protect domestic intellectual property rights, the United States Justice Department today announced the suspension of 82 internet domain names on suspicion of selling counterfeit sports equipment, clothes and DVDs, music and software. But some used the opportunity to engage in scaremongering such as safety of families from harmful counterfeits, though none of the products involved appeared to fit that fear.
Should WIPO Lead Creation Of A Global Repertoire Database?
To solve many of the dilemmas facing copyright holders in the digital age, some say the World Intellectual Property Organization must create and administer an international repertoire database, compiling information about who owns what rights related to specific artistic works.
Global Copyright Licensing Doubts And What To Do About Them
What do the fearsome leader of France’s three-strikes agency, a top Microsoft counsel, Google’s copyright counsel, a free software activist, Egyptian and British librarians, a South American development-oriented academic, and a European music authors’ representative have in common? While one might be tempted to say, ‘very little’, a recent gathering showed one thing - they represent the very wide range of current views on the future of copyright licensing.
US Trademark Commissioner Beresford To Retire
United States Trademark Commissioner Lynne Beresford has announced she will retire on 30 December, according to the US Patent and Trademark Office. Deputy Commissioner for Trademark Operations Deborah Cohn will succeed Beresford and assume her new position as of 31 December.
European Officials Eye Pan-European Passport For Collective Copyright Licencing
The European Commission is considering a proposal in the coming months to create a pan-European passport for collective music licensing intended to overcome stifling difficulties of 27 national collecting societies, a top official has told Intellectual Property Watch in the context of a meeting on copyright and competition.
WIPO Copyright Committee Tackles Visually Impaired Access, Other Exceptions
The World Intellectual Property Organization Standing Committee on Copyright and Related Rights (SCCR) is meeting this week in an attempt to advance proposals to improve global access to copyrighted works, following a disappointing summer meeting that ended without agreement. This week’s meeting also includes renewed discussions of proposed treaties on broadcasters’ rights and rights over audiovisual performances.