Original news and analysis on international IP policy
Non-profit patent researchers studying the most prominent prescription insulin drug to treat diabetes in the United States found it is “overpatented” and “overpriced,” enabling unwarranted price-hikes resulting in rising costs for patients and taxpayers.
Nathan Kelley has stepped down from his role as solicitor and deputy general counsel at the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) to join the Perkins Coie law firm in Washington, DC. Kelley also had served as chief administrative patent judge in charge of the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB).
World Trade Organization intellectual property committee members gather this week for their annual autumn session. On the agenda are now-usual topics looking at intellectual property from two perspectives: IP as an indispensable tool for innovation in particular in the new economy, and IP as a potential threat to access if misused. In addition, India has put forward further questions on goods in transit to the European Union in its directive on custom enforcement of IP rights.
Universities Allied for Essential Medicines (UAEM) announced today that University of Calgary and McGill University are joining University of British Columbia in adopting Global Access Licensing Principles. These principles promote public access to publicly-funded medicines and life-saving health technologies developed in universities, according to a UAEM press release [pdf].
A new US private sector report asserts that China is gaining the inside track on international standard-setting for “Internet of Things” technology, and offers strategies for the United States to keep competitive in the marketplace by maintaining influence over standard-setting while protecting data security.
Donald Trump is no fan of international norms or rules. He’s made this clear on numerous occasions, including during his two speeches at the United Nations. It is surprising, therefore, that one of the few international deals he has made as president – the recently announced treaty replacing NAFTA – contains IP provisions whose main purposes seem to be extending US rules overseas and establishing IP norms for future international agreements.
Catherine Chammartin is the Director of the Swiss Federal Institute of Intellectual Property (IPI). A former specialist in international tax policy, she took office at IPI in November 2015. In an exclusive interview with Intellectual Property Watch's Catherine Saez, she explained the priorities of the office under her leadership, and the office's contribution to the success of Switzerland's innovation record.
A new report reviews how patent linkage mechanisms have been implemented in South Korea, Australia, Canada, and the United States, and identifies precedents for how low and middle-income countries (LMICs) can retain and exploit “constructive ambiguities” in trade treaty text to mitigate the impacts of patent linkage mechanisms and promote the timely availability of generic medicines.
JOHANNESBURG, South Africa -- Conference delegates at the Respect for IP international conference held in South Africa this week were participants in a series of top-level panel discussions about the conference theme that included views about balancing intellectual property’s economic value with achieving social development goals.
United States Patent and Trademark Office Director Andrei Iancu yesterday proclaimed what industry patent attorneys may have wanted to hear, that the recently implemented system for challenging the quality of patents in the United States could be reined in under his leadership.
The United States Department of Health and Human Services has released a new plan intended to reduce drug prices for some patients on Medicare, based on an international pricing index model. In his announcement of the plan, President Trump said the US would save money “for our seniors by paying the prices other countries pay. Nothing special, just the prices that other countries pay.”
Monopoly prices of diagnostic tools and lack of competition in the market constitute a barrier to treatment for people with hepatitis C virus (HCV), but the increased use of “open” diagnostic platforms could reduce prices, a health advocacy research study has found.