Original news and analysis on international IP policy
The committee on patents at the World Intellectual Property Organization is set to be re-energised next week as it tackles four new reports, and addresses an ongoing question of the relationship of patent rights to wider policy issues on climate change and other environmental issues, public health, and food security.
The genetic revolution has come to food, as debates over how to deal with future pressures of population and climate change look to agricultural technology in hope of answers. But questions still remain over who owns the technology, who will do the research, and what forms of - and even whether - biotechnology is appropriate to human needs and the needs of smallholding farmers.
Officials from two lawyerly United Nations agencies met recently to discuss their roles and build cooperation in intellectual property finance, especially in light of the global economic crisis.
The United States Senate on Wednesday overwhelmingly approved the nomination of United States Trade Representative (USTR) designee Ron Kirk as the nation’s 16th trade representative, according to a USTR office release. As USTR, Kirk is member of President Obama’s Cabinet…
The United Kingdom Intellectual Property Office on Monday published a proposal for a “rights agency” that would tackle problems related to digital copyright. The envisioned agency that would be managed and funded by rights owners and take up a two-fold task by facilitating the creation of a digital market and preventing and reducing online piracy.
Outcry from concerned internet users over Australia’s attempts to censor ‘objectionable’ parts of the web has grown this week as internet-based depository for leaked documents Wikileaks reported that one of its pages is now banned in Australia. The page in…
The International Narcotics Control Board, which implements United Nations drug control conventions, has released a set of guidelines they say will help governments prevent the sale of controlled substances online. “Internet pharmacies can be accessed by anyone, anywhere who happens…
Bennett Lincoff writes: If Choruss abandons the time-tested approach of licensing and relies instead on covenants not to sue, it will facilitate a brazen money grab by the major labels it represents, leaving songwriters, recording artists and music publishers empty-handed, and college students holding the bag.
LYON, FRANCE – At the cutting edge of medical technology lie new hopes for patients, but also serious ethical concerns and potential intellectual property snags. Read More...
NAIROBI - Governments in Kenya and other developing nations must be willing to provide financial incentives if they expect companies to carry out research and development of drugs specifically tailored to those countries' needs, a conference in Nairobi was told last week.
A record number of cybersquatting complaints were filed at the World Intellectual Property Organization in 2008, and the organisation is preparing for a potentially much larger set of concerns as the launch of an unknown number of new domains approaches.
Rural and underserved areas in the United States will have US $4.7 billion to improve their access to broadband technologies. Some of the funds are earmarked for specific purposes — $250 million will go to sustainable adoption of broadband, for…