Original news and analysis on international IP policy
The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) is considering a deferred-examination procedure to help reduce the backlog of the more than 770 million patent applications that have not yet been looked at. And the US Congress may be willing to help give the agency the authority to do so in this year's patent-reform legislation.
The World Health Organization global strategy on public health, innovation and intellectual property calls for the exploration of alternative mechanisms to incentivise research and development, including the use of prize funds. A diverse group of non-governmental agencies, government and pharmaceutical industry representatives recently looked at prize funds in detail, to determine different possible approaches and where they might best be applied to medical innovations.
Los Embajadores de Brasil e India ante la Organización Mundial del Comercio (OMC) han acusado a otros miembros de la OMC de no tener fundamentos para bloquear el transporte legal de medicamentos genéricos sobre la base de posibles conflictos de…
Les ambassadeurs du Brésil et de l’Inde auprès de l’Organisation mondiale du commerce (OMC) ont rappelé que l’acheminement de médicaments génériques ne pouvait être bloqué par les autorités douanière du pays de transit en raison d’une atteinte potentielle aux droits…
By William New The ambassadors to the World Trade Organization from Brazil and India on Tuesday charged that other WTO members had no grounds to block legitimate shipping of generic medicines on the basis of potential intellectual property rights conflicts…
By Steven Seidenberg for Intellectual Property Watch
2009 could be a bad year for IP owners in the United States.
For patent owners, it may be particularly tough. The US courts are likely to continue their recent trend of cutting back on patent rights, according to many experts. The question is: what rights may be cut back and by how much?
Copyright and trademark owners in the United States face a different set of troubles. They are struggling to protect their rights in the digital world, and it is far from certain how they will fare.
By William New The World Intellectual Property Organization saw record patent filings again in 2008, but the rate of growth is slowing, WIPO Director General Francis Gurry said Tuesday. Meanwhile, the WIPO secretariat is privately exploring with member governments ways…
Por Kaitlin Mara La semana pasada, un informe y un proyecto de resolución sobre la falsificación de productos médicos de la Organización Mundial de la Salud (OMS) generaron acalorados debates, aunque aún no se han logrado avenencias para salvar las…
La semaine dernière, un rapport et un projet de résolution de l’Organisation mondiale de la santé (OMS) sur les produits médicaux contrefaits ont donné lieu à un débat animé, bien qu’aucun compromis n’ait encore été trouvé pour mettre fin aux…
By Kaitlin Mara A World Health Organization report and draft resolution on counterfeit medical products drew energetic debate last week, though no compromise has yet been found to bridge disagreements over the consultation process behind the counterfeit report and over…
By Liza Porteus Viana for Intellectual Property Watch and William New
Changes in several key international agencies and governments will bring a cadre of new faces to positions that address intellectual property policy, and some potential names for those spots have been circulating in recent weeks.
The naming of the new chief of the World Trade Organization IP Division is "imminent," according to sources close to the process. And as US President Barack Obama began his first weeks in office in late January, many IP-related positions also remain unfilled.
By William New
Alicia Greenidge represents a change for the global pharmaceutical and biotechnology industry, but as she grows into her role as the head of the industry's international trade association, it is unclear whether there will be substantive changes on policy relating to intellectual property and public health. Key policy areas include counterfeit medicines and funding for research and development into diseases afflicting poor populations in ways that echo past industry approaches, but Greenidge brings a new focus on networking and negotiation.