Category News

WIPO Assembly To Wrap Up Early; Budget Issues Wait For December

By William New and Kaitlin Mara Member governments of the World Intellectual Property Organization completed their annual General Assemblies earlier than scheduled this year, but some of the most difficult decisions – such as the budget – will be addressed…

WHO Asserts Global IP And Health Strategy Progressing But Offers Few Details

By Kaitlin Mara Work is ongoing within the World Health Organization on a member-mandated global strategy on public health, innovation and intellectual property, a WHO official said Tuesday. But little information about that work has been forthcoming since the strategy…

“IP5” Biggest Patent Offices Meet As WIPO Assembly Proceeds On Policies

By William New Top officials from the world’s five biggest patent offices met Wednesday night in Geneva to discuss ways to further harmonise their activities, United States Patent Commissioner John Doll told Intellectual Property Watch. Meanwhile, members of the World…

Idris Bids WIPO Farewell; Newly Appointed DG Gurry Outlines Initiatives

By William New Australian Francis Gurry became the next in a short list of leaders of the World Intellectual Property Organization Monday, and promptly signalled a programme of increased multilateralism and bolstered global and local relevance for the United Nations…

Public Interest Groups Sue US Trade Representative Over ‘Secret’ Enforcement Treaty

By Kaitlin Mara Perhaps no topic over the past year has been cause for more uneasy speculation within the intellectual property community than the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA), primarily because the negotiating process for this treaty has been behind tightly…

US Says China To Sign Bilateral Cooperation Deals On IP Enforcement

By Kaitlin Mara High-level officials from China and the United States on Tuesday reiterated their joint commitment to “strategic cooperation” on copyright and trademark protection and enforcement, and agreed to hold further meetings of a joint intellectual property working group…

Industry Still Wary Of ICANN Plan For New Top-Level Internet Domains

By Liza Porteus Viana for Intellectual Property Watch The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) has not adequately explained to the world the need for more generic top-level domains (gTLDs – such as .com), industry representatives said last…

Officials Urge Progress On Law To Boost Science, Innovation In Thailand

By Sinfah Tunsarawuth for Intellectual Property Watch BANGKOK – Recently enacted legislation establishing a national plan on science, technology and innovation is expected to boost Thailand’s competitiveness in science and technology, according to government officials. But it needs a renewed…

Open Business Systems Fill Gap In Mainstream Entertainment Industry

By Kaitlin Mara Outside the realm of mainstream proprietary entertainment, owned by big studios and protected by brand names, lay large numbers of artists without audiences looking for the means to distribute their creativity, and groups of people who yearn…