Original news and analysis on international IP policy
A French bill to protect literary and artistic intellectual property rights on the internet passed the French Senate last night with 189 votes in favour over 142 votes against its adoption. A law creating a high-level authority for the protection…
The closely held date of the next negotiating meeting on the Anti-Counterfeit Trade Agreement (ACTA) is 16-17 July in Morocco, according to an official source. The ACTA negotiation has roiled activists and others for being conducted mostly in secret with…
One month after the French government’s so-called HADOPI law aimed at preventing online illegal downloading was partly censored by the French Constitutional Council, the government has continued its push and is presenting a new law restoring the punishing arm of…
World Health Organization Director General Margaret Chan on Monday urged governments and others to incorporate a “moral dimension” into trade, finance, food security and public health as the world works to correct harm done by “greed” and right itself economically.…
Journal articles by professors at the University of Kansas (US) will soon be freely available online, the school reported, as it becomes the first public university in the United States to embrace an “open access” policy. The university joins ranks…
In addition to writing catchy pop-tunes and executing gravity-defying dance moves, the late Michael Jackson apparently had an inventive streak. It has come to light that the singer holds a patent on shoes that help create “an impressive visual effect”…
Alicia Greenidge, until recently director general of the International Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers and Associations (IFPMA), plans to launch a new platform in Geneva to “build relationships between developing countries, governments, organisations and industries,” according to a press release from…
The spectre of gastronomic imperfection has long haunted connoisseurs of the fine foods of regions in countries like France and Italy. But Canada has been less concerned about the protecting its homegrown flavours. This means the Canadians are powerless to…
As a media crackdown in Iran suppressed major news outlets, and even, reportedly, major social networking sites such as Facebook, social media site Twitter has become critical in providing up-to-the-second news as to what is happening on the ground in…
The United States Patent and Trademark Office has announced that it will revoke an illegitimate patent on internet subdomains that was seen as potentially threatening to the public domain. The US patent, held by a company called Hoshiko, claimed to…