Original news and analysis on international IP policy
Health Action International (HAI) and Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF – Doctors without Borders) today issued a joint report on European Union commitments to safeguard access to medicines. Their report [pdf] comes in the context of the revision of the European Union’s trade and investment policy, released today.
By Ahmed Abdel-Latif , Dick Kawooya, Chidi Oguamanam Note: this article first appeared as: WIPO African ministerial should embrace a pro-competitive and pro-development IP vision, 4 October 2015, BRIDGES AFRICA An African ministerial meeting, organised by the World Intellectual Property…
Maximiliano Marzetti writes: Bill No. 2517-D-2015, presented by Liliana Mazure, Gloria Bidegain, Susana Canela, Gastón Harispe, Héctor Recalde and Eduardo Seminara, was introduced to the Argentine Congress to reform the Argentine Copyright Act (Law No. 11.723) in order to extend copyright over photographic works to life plus 70 years post mortem auctoris. The current period of protection for photographs in Argentina is 20 years since publication (article 34). In case the bill is passed it will have retroactive effect, i.e. photographs that today are in the public domain will revert to private property.
The European Council has confirmed that it will support the request of least developed countries at the World Trade Organization for the extension of a waiver of intellectual property obligations for pharmaceutical products.
Ecuador is preparing a new intellectual property policy that aims to better suit the country's strategic development. On the occasion of the World Intellectual Property Organization General Assembly, Hernán Núñez Rocha, head of the Ecuadorian IP office sat with Intellectual Property Watch to talk about the country's work on the IP policy and its use of IP as a tool for local development. He also explained Ecuador's position on the WIPO committee on traditional knowledge.
In 2007, a Polish company filed an application for a composite European Community trademark comprising the representation in colour of a crocodilian with its torso made up from the letters of the word "kajman" in printed characters for, among others, classes 18 (leather goods) and 25 (clothing, footwear).
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) will launch in November the Enable Makeathon, a programme aimed at developing affordable solutions for persons with disabilities in rural areas.
A new report from Chatham House presenting suggestions for novel business models for antibiotics calls for models in which the return on investment in research and development is not dependent on the volume of sales, also known as delinkage.
The Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership should expressly include an international treaty on cultural diversity, public broadcasters and a coalition have said.
It has been five months since Choi Donggyou assumed the role of KIPO Commissioner. During the 55th WIPO General Assemblies in Geneva this week, he took time to sit down with Intellectual Property Watch and in a mutually prepared Q&A gave his perspective on a wide array of issues, including the IP policies and projects he plans to focus on throughout his term, his intentions for maintaining close collaborative ties with WIPO, and his thoughts on last May's IP5 Heads of Office meeting in Suzhou, China.
COPENHAGEN - Google is “really looking for a balanced IP system,” the company’s head of litigation told the Global Patent Congress, while the European Patent Office elaborated on the “Tomato II” case, which for civil society has become the very symbol of an imbalanced IP system. Intellectual Property Watch spoke with senior officials at both Google and the EPO at the conference.
KAMPALA, UGANDA - The pharmaceutical industry in the East African Community is approaching a higher level of production quality and manufacturing practices. To benefit the industry and increase access to medicines, stakeholders are working towards a united regulatory policy framework aimed at harmonising industrial, health and regulatory policies.