Category North America

President Obama Backs RIAA In Online File-Sharing Case

President Obama's US Department of Justice (DOJ) recently filed a legal brief in support of damages sought by an affiliate of the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), prompting some observers to speculate on the Obama administration’s impartiality in the RIAA’s file-sharing litigation campaign.

Special Interests Seeking Power In ICANN’s New Stakeholder Group

The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, which coordinates the global domain name system, is in the process of reforming its core bodies, and consumer representatives and others see a possibility to inject more balance into the international organisation’s stakeholder groups long dominated by a range of private sector representatives.

High Level Task Force On Human Rights Turns Eye To Health And IP

The World Health Organization global strategy on health and intellectual property includes powerful and potentially paradigm-shifting elements, but it also has notable shortcomings for human rights, says a new document prepared for the United Nations group responsible for the right to development.

“Burning The Ships” — IP And The New, Open Microsoft

An interview with Marshall Phelps, Microsoft’s corporate vice president for intellectual property policy and strategy and a mastermind behind IBM’s and Microsoft’s massive IP valuations, and David Kline, journalist, author and intellectual property consultant, on their new book, "Burning The Ships," which looks inside Microsoft's IP strategy.

Les États-Unis se débattent avec la question de la transparence et l’Europe appelle à une divulgation des textes de l’ACAC

Les parlements suédois et de l’Union européenne appellent actuellement la Commission européenne à rendre publics tous les documents liés à un traité international anti-contrefaçon gardé confidentiel, après que les États-Unis ont affirmé que ces textes relèvent de la sécurité nationale et donc du secret d’État. Cependant, ces derniers ont aujourd’hui décidé de revoir leur politique de transparence.

US Trade Team Responds To Protectionist Pressure In Reports On Trading Partners

The Obama administration’s new trade team has quickly come under pressure to focus on protecting United States interests, including enforcement of intellectual property rights, at a time when multilateral institutions urge governments to remain open for the sake of the global economy.

US Wrestles With Transparency As Europeans Urge Release Of ACTA Texts

The parliaments of Sweden and the European Union are urging the European Union to make public all documentation related to a secretive global anti-counterfeiting treaty, while the United States has claimed the papers are a matter of national security and therefore a state secret. But now the US has decided to undertake a review of its transparency.