Original news and analysis on international IP policy
In an effort to improve internationalisation, the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) will open hubs in Singapore and Istanbul, to serve the Asia-Pacific and Europe, Middle East and Africa respectively. ICANN's headquarters in Los Angeles will become the hub serving the Americas.
Members of the Government Advisory Committee (GAC) of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) are pushing for additional contractual clauses for applicants of new generic top-level domains (TLDs).
A student group is holding top research universities in the US and Canada accountable for how much they are – or are not – contributing to global public health. According to a recently released report by Universities Allied for Essential Medicines, a non-profit organisation, most institutions are falling short when it comes to investing in neglected diseases and promoting access to medicines.
A draft protocol for the protection of new varieties of plants proposed by an inter-governmental African regional economic community is provoking the ire of civil society concerned about the potential impact of the protocol on small farmers, and the lack of consultation of farmers.
Following the Indian Supreme Court decision in Novartis AG v. Union of India, Prof. Frederick Abbott says, "the judgment is well-crafted, with close attention to the facts presented, and appears to take a balanced view of the matters brought before the Court."
The Commission nationale de l'informatique et des libertés (CNIL), the French privacy body, said this week in a statement that it will take legal action against Google after the search engine failed to implement changes to its privacy policies. They were joined by data protection agencies from five other European countries.
Another step toward launching negotiations on a European Union-United States trade agreement has been made as the Office of the US Trade Representative filed a request for comments on the deal and announced a forthcoming public hearing.
Multilingualism not only expands cultural horizons but also provides a tool for innovation, speakers gathered at an international roundtable yesterday said. However, language uniformity is a tempting road taken by many - often for cost-related reasons - while multilingualism should be promoted as a factor in development, they said.
The Australian Pharmaceutical Patents Review yesterday issued its draft report, recommending that the Australian government reduce pharmaceutical patent extension terms and use estimated savings to subsidise research and development.
US President Obama today announced a broad new research initiative to map, explore, and better understand the human brain while finding ways to treat brain-related diseases.
On 23 March, Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev signed a decree establishing a World Intellectual Property Organization office in Moscow.
New Delhi - On 1 April, in a packed room in India’s Supreme Court, two judges - Justice Aftab Alam and Justice Ranjana Desai - delivered a verdict that has the potential to dramatically change the national and global conversation about patents and patients.