US Election Brings IP Uncertainty
With the Republican Party taking control of the United States House of Representatives in yesterday's election, some changes are expected in intellectual property policymaking, according to observers.
Intellectual Property Watch
Original news and analysis on international IP policy
Category Language
First Committee On WIPO Standards Ends In Vote For Suspension
Disagreement over the mandate of a newly-formed World Intellectual Property Organization committee resulted in a vote to suspend the meeting with no conclusions last Friday evening.
A Primer On Spotting IP Issues Associated with Social Media Websites and Content
Most businesspeople and generalists understand that social media can be an important but risky part of doing business. This article seeks to identify how to spot potential intellectual property law issues associated with social media websites and content that can arise for a company.
Compromise UN Protocol Treaty Against Biopiracy Adopted In Japan
With a standing ovation in the early hours of the morning of Saturday, in Nagoya, Japan, an international instrument aimed at preventing misappropriation of genetic resources was adopted by members of the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity. The protocol is also intended to ensure that benefits accrued from the use of those genetic resources are shared equitably with the provider country.
TRIPS Council Discusses Efficacy Of ACTA, Public Health Amendment
A substantive review of a rarely-used amendment to the World Trade Organization intellectual property rules and enforcement trends that may threaten multilateral trade system topped the agenda this week in the Council on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS).
US Would-Be GI Wins Solidarity Award From European GI Producers
European proponents of geographical indications have granted an award to a Hawaiian coffee lacking GI protection as a sign of solidarity with the producers, they said. Europe is a prominent actor in this type of intellectual property right on products linked to a specific regions, and the French government along with a GI lobby group last week held an informational event geared towards Africa.
Bell Tolls For Biodiversity Benefit-Sharing Treaty
Today the negotiating group on a protocol aimed at stopping biopiracy and rewarding countries providing genetic resources had to admit, hours from the end of the high-level meeting of the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), that it has not reached an agreement on the draft text. The president of the convention gave them one more deadline of midnight in Nagoya, Japan, before ministers gather for the last time tomorrow.
Big Pharma Stranglehold: Thwarting India As Independent Maker Of Blockbuster HIV Drugs?
Daniele Dionisio writes: The current break-through of multinational drug corporations in India couples with the protectionist policies pursued by the US and EU and with India’s obligations as a WTO member. Taken together, these realities mean a heavy threat to India’s freedom as independent provider of lifesaving, affordable and state-of-the-art antiretroviral medicines to the resource-limited countries.
UN And Internet Governance, Next Four Years: Better Cooperation Or Bigger Role?
After three weeks of negotiations, member countries and the secretariat of the United Nations International Telecommunication Union hailed the consensus and success of the 2010 Plenipotentiary Conference, which sets the ITU work programme for the next four years. But even through the final rounds of applause, the tensions about how much the internet features in the core mandate of the Union remained audible.
Ministers Arrive To Help Reach Outcome At UN Convention On Biodiversity
As ministers arrived in Nagoya, Japan, for the high-level segment of the UN Convention on Biological Diversity today, negotiators kept trying to reach consensus on remaining agenda items, such as a strategic plan, or an international legal instrument to prevent biopiracy and ensure the fair and equitable sharing of benefits accrued from the use of genetic resources.
Biodiversity Benefit-Sharing Treaty Negotiators Tackle New Text As Clock Ticks
Another grace period has been given to negotiators trying feverishly to find agreement this week in Nagoya, Japan on an international instrument protecting countries against unlawful appropriation of their genetic resources and ensuring the fair sharing of benefits arising from the use of those resources. The delegates are to present their text Wednesday to the UN Convention on Biological Diversity meeting so that it can be approved by ministers.
Food Security Rests On Wild Plant Genetic Diversity, Says UN
The world's future food security could ride on the ability to save the wild cousins of crops usually cultivated for human consumption, says a Food and Agriculture Organization report out today.