Original news and analysis on international IP policy
The German Parliament has passed a joint motion against the growing trend of patent offices to grant patents on software programs. The resolution on “Secure Competition and Innovation in the software development,” obliges the German government to take steps to ensure that software is protected by copyright only and no additional patent protection is granted.
The treaty currently being discussed at the World Intellectual Property Organization is of prime importance for blind and visually impaired people who are expecting that negotiators will engineer a treaty that is workable in the real world, they say. But too much focus on the right holders concerns might endanger the utility of such a treaty, according to the representative of a blind persons’ organisation.
A new text has been the subject of negotiation today by a committee seeking to finalise a draft treaty providing exceptions and limitations to copyrights so that blind and visually impaired people have facilitated access to special format books. Delegates are seeking to find language through agreed statements as a way out of prickly issues.
Last week’s event on the “the role of innovation in creating a dynamic and competitive economy,” held at the 65th session of the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE), gave an opportunity to a panel of experts to discuss the role of innovation in the current European economic circumstances as a tool to improve productivity and competitiveness by different means.
Berlin - Open standardisation processes, their problems and their value for economy and society were the subject of discussion at a conference on 17 April at the German Ministry of Economy and Technology in Berlin.
The Digital Public Library of America (DPLA) has launched a beta version of its website today, which aims to offer free public access to content of all libraries, universities, and museums in the United States.
In an effort to clean up a draft treaty text providing limitations and exceptions to copyright for blind and visually impaired persons, World Intellectual Property Organization members will meet this week for intense drafting sessions. The text, once cleaned, is expected to be sent to a top-level treaty negotiation in June.
Gene banks holding plant genetic material worldwide play a crucial role for future agricultural practices and research and development in the field, especially as people rediscover the importance of their dependence on the land due to the financial situation. The present financial crisis may generate opportunities and losses. This can be illustrated by the Gene Bank of Greece, an institution traditionally rich in genetic material and of global interest.
A meeting meant to advance discussions on a treaty to protect the rights of broadcasting organisations held last week at the World Intellectual Property Organization yielded substantive results, according to the meeting chair. However, civil society remains cautious about potential side effects of such an instrument, while countries appear to have divergent views on the practicalities of the treaty.
Ahmed Abdel Latif says of the Novartis case: The ruling is also a revealing tale about the changing role of developing countries in the global intellectual property landscape and the growing influence of the judiciary in these countries in the implementation of international intellectual property rules.
The number of candidates seeking to be the next director general of the World Trade Organization has dropped from nine down to five.
European copyright collecting societies are not engaged in a cartel but the European Commission was correct in finding that some of the provisions in their reciprocal representation should be barred, the EU General Court (GC) said in a 12 April ruling. The case, which pits the International Confederation of Societies and Authors (CISAC) and 24 of its members against the EC, could be appealed to the EU Court of Justice (ECJ). CISAC said the decision proves its contention that it was not engaged in a conspiracy to restrict competition, and that it has already done away with the complained-of clauses.
Separately, the ECJ has been asked to tackle several key issues in a German matter involving standards-essential patents encumbered with a fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory (FRAND) licensing agreement.