Original news and analysis on international IP policy
A new paper from the intergovernmental South Centre argues that intellectual property provisions in recent free trade agreements would impair countries trying to fulfil the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Image Credits: South Centre
As negotiations take place this week in Japan for a free trade agreement covering the Asia-Pacific region, a group of intellectual property scholars is calling for the public interest to be clearly considered in the copyright rules of the future agreement.
Calling it flawed and narrow and seemingly threatened by its contents, the leading United States business group and US government IP specialists are working to limit the impact of a recent United Nations report that made recommendations for the decades-old problem of ensuring affordable medicines reach people when they are under patent in a way that does not threaten innovation. One step in countering the UN report? Change the discourse in Geneva and elsewhere.
The death was quick, quiet, and unmourned. The Copyright Alert System – a once vaunted plan to stop online copyright infringement in the US – was killed on 27 January. Lasting only four years, CAS had accomplished little and satisfied no one, according to many experts. What went wrong? And what is the movie and music industries’ next plan to combat online infringement?
The construction of a new building to host the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria and other key players in the area of global health is well under way in Geneva. The “Campus Santé” (Health Campus) is expected to open its doors at the beginning of 2018. The hosts of the building will be tenants, while the investment costs are borne by Crédit Suisse, a prominent Swiss investment bank.
A new industry group today took the reins of the Fight the Fakes campaign, a growing coalition against fake medicines, the first rotation in leadership since its launch in late 2013.
In discussion for close to 16 years at the World Intellectual Property Organization, a treaty aimed at protecting broadcasting organisations’ intellectual property rights has not reached conclusion. Intellectual Property Watch sat down recently with the European Broadcasting Union to understand what broadcasters actually say they need to protect their businesses against piracy. As to what they see hindering the technical resolution of the treaty? Politics.
The United States Chamber of Commerce today released its fifth annual International IP Index, which makes the case for the positive impact of intellectual property on economies. The United States scored highest, followed by top European economies and Japan. And near the bottom was India, despite recent efforts to accept the IP system. Separately, the report assesses international trade rules for IP and argues for nations to negotiate "TRIPS-plus" agreements.
A new report by the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) and the International Trademark Association (INTA) estimates that some US$213 billion was lost to digital piracy in movies, music and software in 2015. The report also projects that by 2022, the total value of counterfeit and pirated goods in the world will reach somewhere between US$1.9 to 2.8 trillion.
Seeking to address the growing issue of cancer, and in particular the lack of access to diagnosis and treatment in low and middle-income countries, the International Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers & Associations (IFPMA) and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) have entered into a collaboration.
Health advocacy groups called on the European Commission yesterday to change the way it funds research and development for new medicines so that innovations can serve a larger public.
The World Health Organization Executive Board ended its meeting one day early today, and agreed to have five new institutions to enter into official relation with the organisation, including the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, despite protests from civil society groups, and Knowledge Ecology International, led by activist firebrand Jamie Love. Meanwhile, the WHO is pursuing the implementation of its framework of engagement with non-governmental actors adopted in 2016. WHO members urged the organisation to speedily provide implementation tools such as a register of all such actors. The WHO said all is on track and is expected to be ready by the next World Health Assembly.