Original news and analysis on international IP policy
United Nations members in the final days of negotiating the text of the declaration for a late September high-level meeting on tuberculosis have come under pressure from the United States to omit language referring to the importance of making affordable medicines available to patients in need, according to an urgent bulletin today from a health advocacy group.
Oppositions have been filed in India against two patent applications from US pharmaceutical company Gilead for important hepatitis C medicines, according to non-governmental sources. The opposition filings assert that these applications are “evergreening” patents and therefore violate Indian patent law.
NEW YORK – The UN International Telecommunication Union’s Digit Fiat Currency (ITU-DFC) Focus Group is meeting in New York this week to consider the potential promise and pitfalls of central bank-issued digital currency.
Broad patent protection is one of the goals when securing patent protection for inventions (i.e., new products and services). However, issues start to arise when the claim language becomes too broad. For example, broad claims might be construed as a means plus function limitation against the intentions of the patent prosecutor, and in some cases, those patents are invalidated as being indefinite. At least, this is the case with US patent prosecution. The patent laws of other jurisdictions treat means plus function style of claiming differently, and in my experience, less detrimental to the validity of the patent, writes James Yang.
Common standards are essential for technologies, particularly for interoperability. However, a number of technologies essential to standards are patented, which has created issues relating to licensing or high royalties. Last week, the World Intellectual Property Organization organised an information session on patents and standards, including aspects of patent quality, issues relating to international trade, and the role of the organisation in facilitating the relationship between patents and standards.
The Global Innovation Index 2018, launched on 10 July in New York, has lauded the rise of China as a model for how other low and middle-income economies can advance on innovation. Amid this optimism, however, the global innovation divide remains in step with the global income divide, raising questions for how to bridge this gap. The new index shows signs of progress.
A new trademark regulation entered into force in Albania on June 7, 2018, clarifying a range of issues raised by the changes to the Albanian Industrial Property Law in force as of March 24, 2017. Some of the most significant changes and clarifications concern the following:
Heads of national information and telecommunications regulatory authorities gathered in Geneva for an annual symposium, and agreed on global best practice guidelines for the new digital ecosystem. After the meeting, Brahima Sanou, head of the UN International Telecommunication Union Development Bureau answered Intellectual Property Watch on the outcome of the meeting, and topics such as privacy and the digital divide.
The last World Intellectual Property Organization committee before the summer break ended on a happy note this week. After some time spent tweaking the future work of the WIPO committee on the law of patents, delegates appeared satisfied with the balance achieved. The week saw plans for conferences, numerous new proposals and calls for reports, on subjects such as research exceptions, patents and medicines access, compulsory licensing, technology transfer, and patent quality.
South Africa’s Portfolio Committee on Trade and Industry in Parliament has published a list of select clauses of the Copyright Amendment Bill for public comment. The deadline for comments is 18 July.