Original news and analysis on international IP policy
By Paul Garwood Intellectual property can help improve public health, but drug research costs must be controlled so patients in poor countries can afford urgently needed medicines, a World Intellectual Property Organization symposium heard Wednesday. The Geneva-staged event, at which…
By David Cronin for Intellectual Property Watch BRUSSELS – Concern is growing in both Europe and developing countries about whether a series of free trade agreements slated for signature later this year will contain overly stringent rules on intellectual property.…
By Paul Garwood More technical assistance to developing countries, closer collaboration between UN agencies and overhauling the World Intellectual Property Organization were among calls made during a conference of leading players in the intellectual property community held Monday. The conference,…
By Catherine Saez
In order to explore the relationship between intellectual property rights and life science innovations, the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) is organising policy symposia to identify and clarify the intellectual property dimension in the life sciences.
In a world where biotechnology is booming and new technological frontiers are being crossed, new challenges arise such as ethical questions relating to the implication and applications of biological research. Patent agencies, industry and civil society were invited on 4 September to share their thoughts and experience on the use of the intellectual property system in bioethics.
As Antony Taubman, acting director of the WIPO Global IP Issues Division described it, biotechnology is based on living organisms which raises distinct ethical questions.
By Paul Garwood Kenya’s Parliament has rejected a proposal to revoke the government’s powers to issue compulsory licenses to manufacture products such as generic medicines without patent holder approval, a move welcomed Friday by supporters of universal access to pharmaceuticals.…
By Paul Garwood Kenyan lawmakers are set to debate proposed amendments to a bill that, if passed, would prevent the government from issuing compulsory licenses to produce urgently needed medicines without seeking approval from the patent holder. The amendments, which…
By Monika Ermert for Intellectual Property Watch LINZ, AUSTRIA – How distant is the realisation of a “prevision” and prevention culture as portrayed in the Steven Spielberg movie Minority Report? Telling the future is not as far off as critical…
By David Cronin for Intellectual Property Watch A dispute has erupted between two of the European Union’s most powerful institutions over Thailand’s decision to circumvent pharmaceutical patents in order to boost its supply of cheap medicines. Peter Mandelson, who holds…
By Tatum Anderson for Intellectual Property Watch As Indian lawyers for Swiss pharmaceutical firm Novartis comb through a High Court judgment published today, the question of whether the Indian patent law is compliant with a World Trade Organization treaty remains…
By William New The World Intellectual Property Organization may be the biggest United Nations agency in Geneva working on IP issues, but another body also has taken up the effort. And in a recent conference held by the UN Economic…