Original news and analysis on international IP policy
Britons' 23 June decision to pull out of the European Union has caused shock waves in the UK and Europe, and the vote is still being digested. Early reactions from members of the intellectual property community show that the impact of Brexit on IP policies and issues in Britain and Europe is far from clear.
United States Trade Representative Michael Froman today said biologics remain one of the biggest unresolved issues in getting the Trans-Pacific Partnership passed in the US Congress. He called biologics an intellectual property rights issue and said the administration is working with Congress and industry to resolve concerns without reopening the trade deal completed last autumn.
Reform of the WHO, support for the Contingency Fund for Emergency to enable swift initial responses by the WHO, and a special R&D and innovation chapter in the G7 Ise-Shima Vision for Global Health that does not include the word intellectual property are some of the notables after the G7 Summit closed today in Japan. Counting pages, Global Health and lessons from the recent Ebola and Zika outbreaks did receive the biggest attention. But the G7 would not be its old usual without considerable warnings and some concrete proposals how to fight global terrorism and violent extremism.
Eight ministerial meetings have prepared a fat stack of paper, the “sherpas” have nearly concluded their work, and civil society once more has passed its own resolution on how they propose to tackle the most daunting global problems. Now it's time for the G7 leaders' roundtables – and the photo ops in Ise-Shima, Japan. For two days, the heads of state of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States will talk on trade, foreign policy, climate change and energy. And maybe some digital, R&D and intellectual property issues.
The United States International Trade Commission (ITC), an independent government agency, today released an 800-page analysis of the economic impact of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) Agreement completed last year.
This week's high-profile alleged leak of recent texts of the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) negotiation between Europe and the United States sent a shockwave in policy circles. Below, Intellectual Property Watch highlights some of the IP-related elements in the text.
The alleged intellectual property chapter of a secretive regional trade agreement between an association of ten Asian countries plus six others was released yesterday by a civil society group, which says richer countries in the region are pushing for stringent IP rules.
A number of internet and software industry in the United States have come out in support of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) negotiated by the Office of the US Trade Representative (USTR) last year.
The leaders of India and the European Council today in Brussels discussed a wide range of topics including intellectual property rights - including geographical indications - innovation, digital issues, and health and pharmaceuticals.
Ever heard of Törkölypálinka? It is a Hungarian grape marc spirit and one of approximately 200 geographical origins listed by the European Commission negotiators of the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP). In their newly published proposals, the EU negotiators laid out their ideas on GI protection in the deal, and point to an earlier EU-US agreement with regard to GI protection of wines and spirits. But they also acknowledge the need for considerable bridging between the two systems. GI protection is expected to be one of the highly controversial issues in the “end game” of TTIP.
That the Indian government has been under pressure from the United States to change its patent regime is no secret among those who follow the public discourse on intellectual property rights. Now, a new controversy about India’s alleged private assurance to the US-India Business Council (USIBC) and other lobby groups that it would not invoke compulsory licensing for commercial purposes seeks to add fuel to fiery speculation about a shift in India’s policy on IPR.
The government of Honduras has committed to a work plan for protecting intellectual property rights that includes recognition of food names considered generic by the United States such as "parmesano" (parmesan), provolone and bologna, the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) announced today. Other commitments include signal piracy related to cable and satellite, and a customs trademark registry.