Original news and analysis on international IP policy
CAPE TOWN, South Africa — Plain packaging is considered unattractive among marketers, loss-making for industries, and a healthy life promoter for governments and the public. The potent mix to balance profits, safeguard jobs and cut illnesses has made it a controversial solution to curb smoking. As it grows in popularity around the world, how is plain packaging faring in Africa?
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.
Article 58, a process introduced by the European Commission to help speed up the time low and middle-income countries take to approve new drugs, could be in for a massive overhaul. A revamp has been proposed because it is underused - just a handful of products have gone through the Article 58 process since its launch in 2004. The most recent is an antiseptic chlorhexidine gel that prevents new-born umbilical cord infections in developing countries. A joint project between GSK and Save the Children, it was approved late last month.
The International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) has released a report that examines specialised intellectual property courts around the world.
Legal barriers for Google’s monumental book-scanning project have been removed in the United States, but the initiative remains controversial and would likely run afoul of European [corrected] copyright law, legal experts say.
The Indian government today released its long-awaited new intellectual property policy, and preliminary reactions appear to be that it caters to international pressures while attempting to provide a national focus. A more careful reading with reactions will follow.
US President Barack Obama yesterday signed into law a measure aimed at strengthening trade secret protection including by allowing federal courts to hear cases involving trade secret theft.
YouTube is recognised by many as the world’s biggest music platform. Listening to music on YouTube is free for users. However, according to the music industry, it pays very little in terms of revenue, mostly from advertising. It is time that the safe harbour laws behind which YouTube is hiding, creating a market distortion, be revised or better applied, music industry speakers asserted this week at a World Intellectual Property Organization side event.
A copy of the new Indian patent office order shows the details of the decision to reverse an earlier direction and grant a patent in India on the high-value hepatitis C drug. [Updated with response from Gilead]
NAIROBI, KENYA -- A recent report by the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) is calling for faster establishment of a Pan-African Intellectual Property Organisation (PAIPO) to bring about what it sees as badly needed IP policy coherence on the continent.
Dozens of civil society organisations this week sent a letter urging European telecommunications regulators to preserve internet neutrality in their current negotiations about the future of the internet in Europe.
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.