‘Balanced’ Copyright: Not A Magic Solving Word
It was obviously a moment of some embarrassment for the US Department of Commerce and the World Intellectual Property Organisation.
Intellectual Property Watch
Original news and analysis on international IP policy
Category Development
US, WIPO IP Summit In Africa Postponed
A training programme on intellectual property organised by the United States with several partners to be held in Africa in April has been postponed under pressure to make the programme more transparent and representative of all stakeholders.
WIPO Achieves Single Legal Text On Genetic Resources; Indigenous Peoples Back
After eight days of intensive drafting work, delegates at the World Intellectual Property Organization now have a text that will be submitted to the WIPO General Assemblies in September so that a diplomatic conference can be decided upon to finish negotiations on an international instrument protecting genetic resources from misappropriation.
Indigenous Peoples Walk Out Of WIPO Committee On Genetic Resources
The International Indigenous Forum, in an unprecedented collective move, decided yesterday to withdraw from the discussions of the WIPO Committee on Genetic Resources taking place from 14-22 February. The move calls into question the legitimacy of the negotiations.
Ideas Offered For IP And Genetic Resources In WIPO Committee
A new paper from the International Centre for Trade and Sustainable Development (ICTSD) offers ideas on addressing misappropriation of genetic resources and traditional knowledge at the World Intellectual Property Organization.
US, WIPO Training Programme On IP Rights In Africa Comes Under Fire
For years, some developing countries have insisted that developed countries – which own the vast majority of intellectual property rights – take a singular focus when it comes to offering technical assistance on IP rights: the protection of “northern” property. In recent years, negotiations in venues like the World Intellectual Property Organization have sought to ensure that such assistance also highlight the creation of local IP rights as well as the availability of flexibilities developing countries have under international rules for IP.
EU-India Summit Kicks Off Amidst Warnings Of Impact On Medicines Access
The European Union and India today will engage in a high-level meeting in New Delhi with an agenda that includes energy and climate, research and development, and information and communications technologies. But as they enter the meeting, an international health agency and a powerful health advocacy group have issued statements of concern that intellectual property provisions in a bilateral free trade agreement under negotiation will stifle critical generic medicines production in India, putting thousands of poor patients at risk worldwide.
In 2012: Are Biotech, Ethics And Biodiversity Friends or Foes?
With food demand and prices rising as the world crosses the threshold of 7 billion people, the need to find new medicines, concerns about the shrinking biodiversity and the effects of climate change may designate biotechnologies as the main response. Opinions differ on the way to address those issues, in particular about intellectual property rights attached to biotechnologies.
Legislative questions are being discussed on both sides of the Atlantic around the scope of patentability, and intellectual property rights on plants, seeds, molecules or methods, as well as exemptions that some think should be applied. The year ahead will see some decisions that might impact the biotechnology industry both in the United States and in Europe.
WIPO Report Shows Strong Economic Contribution Of Copyright
The World Intellectual Property Organization has prepared a report on the economic contribution of copyright industries in various large and small countries around the world, and industry supporters hailed it as evidence that the impact on GDP and jobs is significant, if surprisingly varied.
“Politics Of Intellectual Property” Looks At The National Level
A much-referenced book now out in paperback remains one of the few books with a broad social sciences perspective on current conflicts over intellectual property policy, with a focus on the national level set within the context of shifting global patterns.
WHO, Gates, Industry And NGO Leaders Elevate Attention To Neglected Diseases
A range of some of the world’s top public and private partners in public health today announced an “unprecedented” level of cooperation to fight diseases primarily afflicting poorest populations worldwide for which there is insufficient research and development and inadequate health systems. But how the initiative will tie in with governments’ efforts at the World Health Organization to craft a global framework to address these issues remains to be seen.
Officials, Industry Discuss IPR In Relation To Economy And Society
Two top international organisations in Geneva are working to adapt to trends in global intellectual property systems with an eye toward contributing to a positive economic impact, officials told a private sector conference this week. But they heard a complex message about the role of IP in addressing public policy concerns.