Original news and analysis on international IP policy
Sidney Rosenzweig of the Progress & Freedom Foundation writes that some countries, such as China, want to take advantage of new environmental technologies without having to pay, and are advocating the use of compulsory licences to access them.
Georg Greve of Free Software Foundation Europe makes the case that software fails a three-step test to determine patentability.
Addressing the challenge of climate change will require technological solutions and the dissemination of those solutions to as many users as possible. A panel at the World Intellectual Property Organization Tuesday asked how intellectual property law might help or hinder that transfer, and what role the organisation might play in creating the right policy.
Regulatory caution on technology standards and intellectual property rights is increasingly necessary, as technology - and the need for interoperability between platforms - dominates the market economy as well as global communications, said a panel on patents and standards Monday.
The genetic revolution has come to food, as debates over how to deal with future pressures of population and climate change look to agricultural technology in hope of answers. But questions still remain over who owns the technology, who will do the research, and what forms of - and even whether - biotechnology is appropriate to human needs and the needs of smallholding farmers.
Bennett Lincoff writes: If Choruss abandons the time-tested approach of licensing and relies instead on covenants not to sue, it will facilitate a brazen money grab by the major labels it represents, leaving songwriters, recording artists and music publishers empty-handed, and college students holding the bag.
Santiago Roca escriba: La Unión Europea está solicitando mas extensiones en propiedad intelectual que los Estados Unidos de Norteamérica en la negociación del tratado de libre comercio.
With over 1 million patent applications backlogged at the US Patent & Trademark Office, IBM legal counsel Steven Bennett and David Kappos urge adoption of a deferred examination process, which they argue will benefit USPTO, applicants and the public.
On 3 March, 2009, bills were introduced in the US Congress setting forth the proposed "Patent Reform Act of 2009". The legislation proposes significant changes to post-issuance proceedings available to challenge patents in the United States. US attorneys Matthew A. Smith, Stephen B. Maebius and Jon W. Dudas argue the proposed legislation will be a step toward improving patent quality.
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.
Should national drug control bodies grant marketing licences to generic medicine companies only if their products do not possibly infringe existing patent rights? Yes, German pharmaceutical company Bayer told the High Court of Delhi last week when the court heard arguments in an ongoing court case on patent linkage.
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.