Original news and analysis on international IP policy
Global public health experts in charge of exploring ways to finance R&D on diseases endemic in developing countries last week provided a preliminary summary of assessments on proposals provided by various stakeholders. They also made recommendations to establish global mechanisms, including a binding global instrument for R&D and innovation for health.
The World Health Organization will be entering a new phase of its global action plan for influenza vaccines, a WHO representative told reporters today. The goals of the first phase of the programme should be furthered but with more attention given to the local health and policy environment, WHO said.
The World Intellectual Property Organization has taken its first public steps in the climate change debate by holding a conference on the subject this week. The organisation’s expertise in intellectual property policy and technology transfer is being sought by several other actors in the field, in particular the United Nations climate change agency.
India has at least seven diverse intellectual property (IP) legislations related to protection already in place. Its focus should therefore arguably be directed - along the lines of many other IP jurisdictions - on more stringent enforcement modus operandi of the IP rights. Is there scope for introducing yet another IP legislation – the utility model protection law - in the Indian IP landscape and if so, what should be its scope and implication, asks Swarup Kumar.
The Medicines Patent Pool and pharmaceutical company Gilead Sciences today announced a breakthrough licence agreement to allow for the production of key HIV medicines at lower cost and in an easier-to-use formulation, making them more accessible to developing countries. The agreement also opens up the use of treatments for Hepatitis B for the first time.
The World Intellectual Property Organization is continuing its push to become involved in some of the biggest policy questions of the day with an international conference on climate change next week. This follows recent efforts on public health and food security.
The United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) is holding a two-day meeting to increase awareness of intellectual property rights throughout the region.
Concern over non-communicable diseases - traditionally a more developed-country set of problems like diabetes - is energising the international public health policy community. But representatives of the public interest are still grappling with their response.
The European Organisaton for Nuclear Research (CERN) today issued an open hardware licence for electronic designs, following its principle of “open science.”
A diverse team of global experts on public health research and development will meet this week behind closed doors to analyse proposals for ways to fund R&D on diseases afflicting poor populations – and for who should coordinate such global efforts.
The World Intellectual Property Organization recently stepped into the agriculture field with its first seminar on the use of intellectual property to increase productivity. In the seminar, proponents of IP rights defended the value of protection and the necessity of relying on technology to answer the needs of an inflated world population.
An international treaty on the protection of audiovisual performances might be back on track after a hiatus of over 10 years, as World Intellectual Property Organization delegates today reached an agreement on a text and will propose to the WIPO General Assembly to convene a high-level negotiation. A major step was also taken in the direction of a possible treaty on copyright limitations and exceptions for blind and visually impaired people, according to all sides, although some countries are still in favour of a softer instrument.