Category Regional Policy

The Downfall Of Invention: A Broken Patent System

The cost of dozens of brand-name drugs have nearly doubled in just the past five years. Public outrage over drug prices extends from Capitol Hill to the presidential candidates to patients. In response, pharmaceutical executives are spending more on lobbying and marketing. Yet for all this attention, most of the proposed solutions for reducing prescription drug costs—tougher negotiations, appeals for transparent R&D costs or investigations into insurers—miss one of the primary sources of the problem: the way we award patents, writes Tahir Amin.

William New, Guest contributor and William New, Guest contributor
August 18, 2016
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Thailand Enforces Law To Promote IP As Loan Collateral, Amends Trademark Law To Raise Penalty For Deception

BANGKOK - Thailand has enforced a new law to promote using intellectual property as loan collateral, an effort likely to make intellectual property a more valuable asset for its holders. But experts caution that the country still lacks the infrastructure of a viable IP market.

Sinfah Tunsarawuth
August 18, 2016

Number Of Unique Patent Assertions Declined Over Years, Patexia Finds

Pedram Sameni of Patexia writes: We recently studied the PTAB data and suggested that although the rise and fall in litigation indirectly affected the rise and fall in IPR challenges, the true driver of IPR challenges is the number of unique patents asserted each year. To learn more, we decided to look at the number of unique patents asserted against different defendants since 2010. We made several interesting discoveries, including the surprising fact that even though the number of cases has been rising, the number of unique patents asserted each year has been declining.

US Agencies Seek Comment On Updated Antitrust Guidelines For IP Licensing

In an age when licensing of intellectual property plays a critical role in business strategy, the United States Department of Justice and Federal Trade Commission are seeking public comment on a proposed update of the antitrust guidelines for IP licensing.

William New
August 17, 2016
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EFF Challenges DMCA Anti-Circumvention Provisions, Reopens “Dancing Baby” Case

Issues arising from the often-controversial US Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) prompted the Electronic Frontier Foundation to head to court in recent weeks to address what it sees as violations of free speech and the right to freely use copyrighted content in some instances.

Dugie Standeford
August 16, 2016
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Israel As Cybersecurity Powerhouse Applies Knowhow To Intellectual Property

Israel has emerged as the world’s second-largest exporter of cyber security services behind the United States, as data attacks are increasingly becoming a threat to intellectual property ownership.

Bruce Gain
August 16, 2016

Growing Call For Transparency Within African CMOs To Ensure Membership Confidence

KAMPALA, Uganda -- Collective management organisations (CMOs) in African Regional Intellectual Property Organization (ARIPO) member states, and Africa at large, have the potential to contribute to the growth and development of creative industries. However, they need to be supported, guided and supervised to ensure that they achieve the purpose for which they are established.

Hillary Muheebwa
August 16, 2016

Kenyan Start-Ups Make The Ride Tough For Uber

NAIROBI, Kenya -- After making a dramatic entry into the African market late last year that was marked by as much drama as elsewhere in the world, global taxi hailing service Uber is facing tough times in the Kenyan market, thanks to a number of innovative tech start-ups that are giving the company a run for its money.

Maina Waruru
August 15, 2016
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Olympic Games: Trademark Revenues Are High Stakes

With a budget of over 2 US$ billion, the Brazilian Olympics rely heavily on commercial sponsors and licensing for revenue. Protecting the Olympic symbols is thus an imperative for the games with stringent rules on the use of those symbols and related signs. However, the fame of the event also draws covetousness from a variety of commercial actors seeking free rides, which is a dangerous endeavour, according to legal sources. Brazil adopted special rules for the occasion, while in the United States the protection is particularly stringent.

Brexit Could Have Broad Impact On UK Audiovisual Sector

It is too soon to say precisely what impact the United Kingdom's departure from the European Union might have on Britain's audiovisual sector, but among other things, Brexit could bring changes to the scope of copyright law and protections, rights clearance, online AV services and content creation, lawyers said.

Dugie Standeford
July 29, 2016

Summer Changes Make A Splash In The IP Community

Over the summer months, people in the intellectual property world continue to circulate. UNITAID has changed heads, and other well-known figures in Geneva set off to new horizons. And no rest it seems for law offices, which maintained their usual level of moves between firms. Here is the latest on People in the IP community.

Catherine Saez, Alexandra Nightingale and Catherine Saez, Alexandra Nightingale
July 28, 2016

MSF Hearing On Opposition To Pfizer Pneumonia Patent In India

Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF, Doctors Without Borders) filed a patent opposition in March in India to prevent Pfizer from patenting a pneumonia drug and will defend its position in a hearing tomorrow at the Indian Patent Office.