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WIPO PCT Reform Ends As Swiss Disclosure Proposal Suspended

By William New
Switzerland is known for its neutrality in many international forums, but when it comes to intellectual property rights, it generally has an opinion in favour, unsurprising given its high number of rights holders. Last week at the World Intellectual Property Organization, the government showed how it can make a move to favour IP rights in an international forum while retaining that special art of Swiss diplomacy.

The Working Group on Reform of the WIPO Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) held its ninth session from 23 to 26 April. The PCT, which allows recognition of a patent filed in one nation to be recognised in all PCT members, is an important contributor to WIPO’s finances through fees it charges.

At the meeting, Switzerland again prepared to put forward a proposal to amend the PCT regulations to "explicitly enable the national patent legislation" to require the declaration of the source of genetic resources and traditional knowledge in patent applications. This would leave it up to the national level to decide whether to make disclosure part of national law. It would allow that disclosure could take place at the national level or later during the international phase, said the proposal, PCT/R/WG/9/5.

US WTO Cases Against China Draw Reactions

By Tove Iren S. Gerhardsen
NEW YORK - A United States official who presented the arguments for why the United States has taken China to the World Trade Organization (WTO) for alleged breaches of trade law related to intellectual property rights and market access was met with strong support from industry and lawyers, but equally strong criticism from others at a recent conference.

DRM Actions Could Prompt Fresh Look At Protecting Copyrighted Content

By Dugie Standeford for Intellectual Property Watch
Two recent developments - the decision by music industry giant EMI to sell downloads free of digital rights management (DRM) and the launch of France's new DRM agency - could change the nature of the debate on copyright reform. While it remains to be seen whether EMI and other companies offering unprotected content are successful, or the Regulatory Authority for Technical Measures (ARMT) effectively resolves interoperability disputes, it is likely that content providers and policymakers around the world will be watching closely, experts said.

Google’s Expanded Functions Spark More Lawsuits and Debate

By Dugie Standeford for Intellectual Property Watch
Google is turning the intellectual property world on its head as it battles challenges to its search, book publishing and online video activities. The outcome of the debate over whether any are compatible with copyright law is by no means certain, legal experts said this week.

Yet Google doesn't think it is shaking up copyright law, said Rachel Whetstone, director of European corporate communications and public affairs.

Seminar Addresses Liability, Filtering Of User-Posted Online Content

By John T. Aquino for Intellectual Property Watch
WASHINGTON, DC - "What goes up on the Internet must come down because of copyright infringement until it goes up again," according to James DeLong, moderator of a 16 March seminar in Washington, DC. The seminar heard views on liability, filtering and copyrights related to user-generated content online, and offered a voice to Viacom to explain its legal attack on Google's popular video upload site YouTube.

EU Enforcement Directive Stuck: What Is ‘Commercial Scale’ Infringement?

By Monika Ermert for Intellectual Property Watch
For the third time since December, the European Parliament committee vote on an EU directive on criminal sanctions against infringers of intellectual property rights has been postponed. This is a signal that there are great difficulties with the text, say observers from non governmental organisations, who argue that the European Commission should kill it or rewrite it from scratch.

But a compromise is near, according to the vice chair of the Committee on Legal Affairs and the Internal Market (JURI), Rainer Wieland (EPP).

Mobile Phone Cases Test Royalties’ Link To Patent Quality

By Tatum Anderson for Intellectual Property Watch
When should a patent be considered higher quality? Qualcomm, the United States mobile technology firm at the heart of countless patent infringement court cases, has justified the royalties it charges on mobile phone patents in a paper released earlier this month.