Original news and analysis on international IP policy
A joint project being launched by a regional non-profit group along with the Ecuador’s intellectual property office (IEPI) aims to reduce software piracy by offering a free software alternative through public libraries. The initiative is meant to encourage the use of legal software and thereby lower the piracy rate.
Computer giant IBM is facing an antitrust claim before the European Commission brought by an open source software company alleging that IBM is preventing customers from using that software. Meanwhile, the open source community is worried that the use of intellectual property rights by IBM - a leading open source software maker – to block a competitor will endanger free and open source software and might uncap other IP rights claims from other players. IBM, for its part, is reaffirming its support to open source community and has asked the competing company to explain how its software does not infringe on IBM IP rights.
Several members of the European Parliament today sent letters to the directors general of the World Intellectual Property Organization and the World Trade Organization requesting technical assistance in the negotiation of an agreement that some are calling an attempt to circumvent global norms on intellectual property enforcement and related public interest flexibility.
The United Kingdom Parliament late last night approved a controversial digital economy bill that allows the court to impose obligations on internet service providers to limit internet access of its users deemed to have infringed online copyrights.
Lassi Jyrkkiö writes: Anything one can consider as politically cool from an EU perspective, ACTA (Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement, the multilateral treaty to combat counterfeiting and piracy) negotiations have got it all: the internet, the USA, large potential for media exposure and a hitherto Nixonian element of secrecy balanced by a flow of thrilling documents leaked by generous deep-throats.
The truth about the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA) is different depending on which side you are on.
In the aftermath of the recent protracted fights over healthcare, the United States has seen a wave of intellectual property-related policy activity
The European Court of Justice’s recent ruling in Google v. Louis Vuitton Malletier SA has been hailed a major legal victory for Google and other search providers. That, however, is only part of the story.
A new accord designed to bolster political and economic ties between the European Union and Central America could result in greater seizures of medicines whenever pharmaceutical companies allege that their patents have been infringed, public health advocates have warned.
世界卫生组织就处理假冒伪劣（conterfeit）药品问题继续开展工作，但是上周晚些时候召开的一个会议暴露出一些方面对该组织的工作方式表示担心。
Alors que l’Organisation mondiale de la Santé (OMS) continue de travailler sur la question des médicaments contrefaits, une réunion organisée en fin de semaine dernière a révélé des inquiétudes quant à la manière dont ce travail est mené.
La Organización Mundial de la Salud (OMS) continúa trabajando en el tema de los medicamentos falsificados, pero la semana pasada una reunión reveló preocupaciones progresivas sobre la forma de conducir la labor.