Original news and analysis on international IP policy
As negotiations take place this week in Japan for a free trade agreement covering the Asia-Pacific region, a group of intellectual property scholars is calling for the public interest to be clearly considered in the copyright rules of the future agreement.
As the World Trade Organization intellectual property committee meeting next week is expected to discuss the report of the United Nations Secretary General’s High-Level Panel on Access to Medicines next week, a group of developing countries is convening a side event to engage in discussion with members of the panel. The report included several direct recommendations to WTO members.
The European Commission has launched a call for comments on its proposed plan to help EU members fight antimicrobial resistance.
Search engines Google and Bing have signed a voluntary code of conduct with the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) and the Motion Picture Association to prevent consumers from being directed to copyright-infringing websites, the UK Intellectual Property Office said on 20 February. The deal, brokered by the IPO, comes into effect immediately and is intended to reduce the visibility of infringing content in searches by 1 June, the office said.
A new industry group today took the reins of the Fight the Fakes campaign, a growing coalition against fake medicines, the first rotation in leadership since its launch in late 2013.
A new set of science and technology indicators shows that the business sector is expected to remain the driving force behind research and development growth, according to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). The OECD released its main science and technology indicators today and found that government-financed research and development expenditures have been declining for some years.
A new report by the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) and the International Trademark Association (INTA) estimates that some US$213 billion was lost to digital piracy in movies, music and software in 2015. The report also projects that by 2022, the total value of counterfeit and pirated goods in the world will reach somewhere between US$1.9 to 2.8 trillion.
Seeking to address the growing issue of cancer, and in particular the lack of access to diagnosis and treatment in low and middle-income countries, the International Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers & Associations (IFPMA) and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) have entered into a collaboration.
As it published the three-millionth international patent application under its Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) on 2 February, the World Intellectual Property Office suggested that there may be ways to improve the system in the future.
Health advocacy groups called on the European Commission yesterday to change the way it funds research and development for new medicines so that innovations can serve a larger public.
The Environment, Public Health and Food Safety Committee of the European Parliament has voted to adopt a draft report on measures to increase availability of medicines within the European Union.
The World Health Organization and The Netherlands government will co-host a meeting in the spring that brings experts together to look at high drug prices and the purchasing of medicines.