The Realities Of Traditional Knowledge And Patents in India
India’s laws on traditional knowledge are yielding interesting positive and negative results, writes Mohan Dewan.
Intellectual Property Watch
Original news and analysis on international IP policy
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ACTA Negotiators Still Aiming For Agreement By Year’s End
Countries negotiating a semi-secret trade agreement against piracy and counterfeiting this week in Tokyo are still aiming to reach agreement by the end of this year, a negotiator told Intellectual Property Watch today. The negotiator also did not reject outright the notion that patents might still be included in the draft treaty text, instead saying it is still a matter for discussion.
Ambassadors Meet Outside WTO To Discuss TRIPS Negotiations
More than a dozen ambassadors to the World Trade Organization met today at the New Zealand mission in Geneva to discuss the state of negotiations related to intellectual property rights and trade.
Civil Society Fights For Participation As ACTA Counter To WIPO Rises
A new rival to the World Intellectual Property Organization is being created away from the tempering effect of public scrutiny, which could result in limits on the free movement of knowledge or products subject to IP rights, a civil society representative said yesterday.
USPTO Director David Kappos Speaks On Need For IP Cooperation
Patent offices around the world must work together to combat the inefficiencies in patent processing that threaten to stifle innovation and as a result slow needed growth of the global economy, David Kappos, director of the US Patent and Trademark Office said today.
Special Report: Global Internet Governance Work At A Turning Point
Five years after the tale began in Athens, the United Nations Internet Governance Forum returned to Europe last week to ask itself what has been achieved. The answer was encouraging enough to prompt a range of internet stakeholders to suggest continuation of the group, this time with a greater focus on concrete outcomes.
Coherence Needed To Avoid Multilateral Legal Swamp, WTO Told
The multilateral system with its different agencies dealing with specific areas is sometimes seen as incoherent in global negotiations and norm-setting as there are overlaps in competency, definition and scope, according to speakers at a side event to the recent World Trade Organization Public Forum.
Musician Stevie Wonder Just Calls On WIPO To Improve Books Access
Grammy award-winning singer/songwriter and UN Messenger of Peace Stevie Wonder today called on the governments of the World Intellectual Property Organization to create a system for copyright law to assist those with disabilities in getting access to education and reading materials. It is time to "declare a state of emergency and end the information deprivation that continues to keep the visually impaired in the dark," he told assembled delegates.
IP “Authorities” Meet To Discuss IP Infrastructure, Collaboration
The second global symposium of intellectual property authorities met last week at the World Intellectual Property Organization in Geneva to discuss global IP infrastructure and collaboration between IP offices, particularly in ways that might bring greater benefit to small offices.
Online Social Media Strategy: Use Them Or Be Used By Them
A frontline debate among many industry intellectual property lawyers in the United States is how to handle the explosion in use of online social networking media tools like Facebook, Twitter or FourSquare.
US Companies, Officials Discuss Policies To Boost IP Value, Cut Costs
Private-sector experts and key government officials in the United States came together this week to discuss strategies for improving rules and procedures on intellectual property, and look for ways to maximise the value of company IP assets while cutting costs.
Economists Report Empirical Evidence Of TRIPS Impact On Developing Countries
The World Trade Organization Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) agreement has sparked decades of international debate over whether exporting stronger intellectual property norms to developing countries is beneficial or harmful.