Original news and analysis on international IP policy
The government of oil-dependent Saudi Arabia has posted a series of requests for proposals for renewable energy technology partnerships via the World Intellectual Property Organization "Green" initiative that provides a marketplace for IP-protected products related to the environment.
A cohort of senior Chinese officials from the China National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA) has graduated from a four-month training programme at the Intellectual Property Research Institute of Queen Mary University of London.
The European Patent Office has published a report detailing differences in the laws and procedures of European countries for the granting of compulsory licences.
The Trump administration yesterday made some firm statements about reducing health care and drug prices for American consumers and making costs more transparent. The statements again appear to focus on other countries paying more for US-made drugs but also promote generic drugs.
Swiss health activist group Public Eye yesterday requested the Swiss government to declare a compulsory licence for a Roche breast cancer treatment which the group says is unaffordable.
A new chapter begins. The business of technology and science has been, and will increasingly be, the business of government: with this in mind, the US Government Accountability Office (GAO) has launched a new Science, Technology Assessment and Analytics (STTA) team with the aim to expand the support to lawmakers on topics whose importance has exponentially increased in the world of today.
The Drugs for Neglected Diseases initiative (DNDi) and Medicines for Malaria Venture (MMV) today announced the launch of the "Pandemic Response Box", which offers researchers open access to 400 compounds that could lead to development of new treatments for pandemic diseases. In return, researchers "will be expected to share data resulting from research on the molecules from the box in the public domain within 2 years of its generation."
With negotiations for the European Union Copyright Directive apparently approaching an end, a group of some 95 screenwriters and directors joined the intensive lobbying efforts with a letter today urging that a principle of "proportionate" remuneration to them be enshrined. The letter spells out several elements they argue are key to ensuring European audiovisual authors are able to "make a living from our craft and creativity."
The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) today announced the appointment of a veteran USPTO official to the position of deputy general counsel and solicitor.
The Indian Ministry of Commerce and Industry from the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion recently published draft amendments to the Patent Rules of 2003 that would expand the eligibility for expedited examination of patent applications to include women and small entities, and would waive the fees for online filing of international patent applications through the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT), among other changes.
The World Health Organization has announced it will be establishing a global multidisciplinary panel of experts “to examine the scientific, ethical, social and legal challenges associated with human gene editing.”
Global health experts, including senior officials at the World Health Organization, are calling for a global accountability mechanism for access to essential medicines, noting that a the lack of data on medicines affordability and national pharmaceutical expenditures has hindered this process, according a recent article published in UK medical journal The Lancet.