Original news and analysis on international IP policy
By Catherine Saez The addition of new actors including developing countries and a trend of over-patenting in some developed countries is leading to an overload of the global patent system, according to Roland Grossenbacher, director of the Swiss Federal Institute…
By Dugie Standeford for Intellectual Property Watch Problems related to digital preservation, orphan works and out-of-print materials must be resolved if European Commission plans to digitise and make accessible Europe’s cultural heritage are to succeed, copyright experts said in an…
By Tove Iren S. Gerhardsen MUNICH – The European Patent Office (EPO) has published a report on what the intellectual property rights system may look like in the future, while it celebrates the present and its 30th anniversary this year.…
By Dugie Standeford for Intellectual Property Watch
Two recent developments - the decision by music industry giant EMI to sell downloads free of digital rights management (DRM) and the launch of France's new DRM agency - could change the nature of the debate on copyright reform. While it remains to be seen whether EMI and other companies offering unprotected content are successful, or the Regulatory Authority for Technical Measures (ARMT) effectively resolves interoperability disputes, it is likely that content providers and policymakers around the world will be watching closely, experts said.
By Tove Iren S. Gerhardsen NEW YORK – Two “old” intellectual property policy issues are continuing to generate new debate among legal and policy experts, namely the broadcasting treaty under negotiation at the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), and the…
By Tove Iren S. Gerhardsen NEW YORK – When this week’s Fordham University conference on intellectual property was discussing future trends in the areas of patents, trademarks and copyright, patents seemed to be the winner in terms of number of…
By Tove Iren S. Gerhardsen BRUSSELS – While waiting for the time to ripen to introduce a single European Community patent, the European Commission has outlined a compromise that would start with a harmonised court system for patent lawsuits, an…
By Tove Iren S. Gerhardsen BRUSSELS – Whether research and development into new medicines for poor countries may best be secured through the strengthening of current partnerships or through entirely new schemes was the focus of an expert workshop held…
By Dugie Standeford for Intellectual Property Watch A European Commission proposal to criminalise commercial intellectual property rights (IPR) infringements is headed for a vote in the European Parliament despite strong opposition to some provisions from industry sectors and consumer groups.…
By Monika Ermert for Intellectual Property Watch The European Parliament this week passed a resolution on cross-border collective rights management asking for a framework directive at the EU level that would encourage more competition. But parliamentary members of the bigger…
By Monika Ermert for Intellectual Property Watch
For the third time since December, the European Parliament committee vote on an EU directive on criminal sanctions against infringers of intellectual property rights has been postponed. This is a signal that there are great difficulties with the text, say observers from non governmental organisations, who argue that the European Commission should kill it or rewrite it from scratch.
But a compromise is near, according to the vice chair of the Committee on Legal Affairs and the Internal Market (JURI), Rainer Wieland (EPP).
By Dugie Standeford for Intellectual Property Watch AMSTERDAM – The current scheme for clearing broadcast retransmission rights harms cable operators and should be revamped, speakers said at this week’s Cable Europe 07 conference in Amsterdam. An alternative to collective rights…