Original news and analysis on international IP policy
Computer technology giant Microsoft has lost an appeal on a patent case that now could see the company withdrawing the current versions of two of its widely-used software programmes from the market. The dispute concerns a computer language for document…
The term of protection on sound recording for performers and producers has been extended in Argentina from 50 to 70 years, according to the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI). The extension of the protection was supported by the…
US internet search engine company Google was sentenced by a French tribunal to pay a €300,000 euro fine to French publishing company La Martinière on 18 December but plans to appeal, according to sources. According to the judgment posted on…
The World Trade Organization’s dispute-settling Appellate Body has issued its report on a complaint made by the United States against China on “Measures Affecting Trading Rights and Distribution Services for Certain Publications and Audiovisual Entertainment Products.” The case concerns measures…
The General Council of the World Trade Organization on 17 December agreed to extend a deadline for accepting an amendment to the Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) agreement by two years. The amendment would make permanent a temporary…
Intellectual property rules are the predominant tool to manage knowledge ownership and diffusion, but the complexity of IP regimes at the bilateral, regional or multilateral levels as well as the strengthening of these rules is a source of tension between…
The provisional list of registered participants to the 7-18 December United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP15) in Copenhagen is out, and a look at it reveals the variety of people considered relevant to the timely and cross-cutting issue. A look…
The placement of specialised United States government intellectual property attachés overseas, such as in Beijing and Guangzhou, China; New Delhi, India; and Bangkok, Thailand, has had an overall positive impact on coordination of international IP enforcement efforts, the US Government…
Following Ambassador Trevor Clarke’s appointment at the World Intellectual Property Organization and departure from the Barbados delegation, Ambassador Karen Tan of Singapore will chair the World Trade Organization Council on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) “Special Sessions,” until…
The world’s five “major” intellectual property offices, the so-called “IP5,” have launched a website to detail their joint projects, the European Patent Office reported today. In particular, the website will document progress on ten projects agreed to last year on…
A North American hotel chain recently lost a case at the World Intellectual Property Organization against a critical workers’ union website it tried to silence through a trademark claim. A panellist under the WIPO Arbitration and Mediation Center ruled on…
The United States Patent and Trademark Office today announced a pilot programme to accelerate examination of some environmental technology patent applications to speed commercialisation. The US-oriented initiative was announced by US Commerce Secretary Gary Locke, who oversees the patent office,…