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WTO Discussions On Biodiversity Intensify As Differences Remain

Intellectual property issues related to biodiversity were the topic of two different sessions at the World Trade Organization on 15 March with minimal progress, according to participants. But the second session, consultations with a senior WTO official, seemed to sharpen…

New Submissions Feed CBD Debate At TRIPS Council Meeting

At the two-day meeting of the World Trade Organization (WTO) council responsible for intellectual property rights, discussions first focused on two new submissions on issues related to the UN Convention on Biodiversity (CBD). The relationship between the CBD and the…

Full Agenda For WTO TRIPS Council Next Week

The World Trade Organization committee addressing intellectual property will face a full range of issues when it convenes for the first of three scheduled meetings this year. The 14-15 March meeting of the Council on the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects…

Public Health And Patents Heat Up WIPO Debate On Harmonisation

Discussions at an open forum last week on a possible harmonisation of international patent laws showed that countries do not only disagree on whether it would be useful or not but also have different expectations on what such a harmonisation…

Groups Decry Impact Of IP And Health Terms In US Trade Agreements

By Martin Vaughan for Intellectual Property Watch WASHINGTON, DC – Public health activists are condemning recent terms agreed to by Colombia, Peru and Central American countries in bilateral trade negotiations with the United States, that bind those countries to offer…

Biotech Industry Fights Disclosure In Patents On Three IP Policy Fronts

For the coming months, key biotechnology industry organisations are focusing their efforts on blocking the addition of disclosure of origin requirements in international patent applications on three fronts. The issue is being debated in three international fora: the World Trade…