Original news and analysis on international IP policy
An open forum at the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) explored the complexities of a possible worldwide harmonisation of patent rules in a mostly amicable environment. Work on harmonising the global patent system under a draft Substantive Patent Law Treaty…
By Martin Vaughan for Intellectual Property Watch WASHINGTON, DC – Public health activists are condemning recent terms agreed to by Colombia, Peru and Central American countries in bilateral trade negotiations with the United States, that bind those countries to offer…
For the coming months, key biotechnology industry organisations are focusing their efforts on blocking the addition of disclosure of origin requirements in international patent applications on three fronts. The issue is being debated in three international fora: the World Trade…
By Steve Gibb for Intellectual Property Watch WASHINGTON, DC – The director of the US National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) is facing overwhelming opposition to a plan to privatise an open-access environmental science journal NIEHS publishes, according to…
On 22 February the biotechnology and crop industry association CropLife International hosted a side event as well as an evening reception to the ongoing discussions of a development agenda at World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). Intellectual Property Watch talked with…
The international crop and biotechnology industry’s concerns about current discussions on intellectual property as well as developing countries’ needs were discussed at a recent industry side event to the ongoing discussions at the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). The event…
The impact of copyrights on access to everything from digital books in libraries to online music was discussed at a 21 February side event of a World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) meeting on a development agenda. One of the main…
By Tove Iren S. Gerhardsen and William New Nations negotiating on a range of proposals to increase the development dimension at the World Intellectual Property Organization are divided over ways to either advance or conclude the talks. The first proposal…
PRAGUE – Les groupes industriels pro-brevets, qui ont investi des sommes considérables pour influencer les débats au sein de l’Europe sur un projet de directive – finalement rejeté – en matière de brevetabilité des inventions mises en oeuvre par ordinateur,…
The Internet governance forum established by the November World Summit on the Information Society began to take shape after a 16-17 February meeting at the United Nations. The first forum will be held in Athens, Greece, but the date and…
By Tove Iren S. Gerhardsen and William New Non-governmental organisations attending this week’s meeting on a stronger development agenda for the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) are working to remind participants of the key elements of the original proposals. In…
By Tove Iren S. Gerhardsen and William New On the eve of a meeting on a development agenda at the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), the United States and Colombia have added proposals for improving technical assistance for developing countries…