Are You Looking To Sell Your Patent To Google?
From 8-22 May, US online search giant Google will open a streamlined portal for patent owners to let Google know about patents they are willing to sell at a price they set.
Intellectual Property Watch
Original news and analysis on international IP policy
Category Regional Policy
Philanthropies And Expression: An Interview With Ford Foundation President Darren Walker
Darren Walker is president of the Ford Foundation, one of the largest and historically most influential private philanthropies in the United States, dedicated to human welfare worldwide. Among its areas of focus are programs on freedom of expression and internet rights, extremely timely given current national and global events. Ford, along with four other leading foundations, and leaders from government, business and the technology community recently announced NetGain, a partnership to “spark the next generation of innovation for social change and progress.” Intellectual Property Watch’s William New recently interviewed Darren Walker on his vision for the foundation, internet governance, and the world at large.
A Cautious Welcome For South Africa’s Traditional Knowledge Legislation
South Africa’s new indigenous knowledge systems legislation is being cautiously welcomed by commentators, expressing both hopes and concerns. And some are tying it to other intellectual property legislation in the country.
UAEM Grades US Universities On Research For Neglected Diseases. Spoiler Alert – There’s Room For Improvement
Universities play an enormous role in biomedical research in the United States, but are not doing all they can to advance research for neglected diseases or make their innovations available to people who need them most, the student groupUniversities Allied…
Largest Internet Exchange Point Announces Complaint Against Snooping
MUNICH - It was a big day for counter-surveillance yesterday. Decix, the largest internet traffic exchange point (IXP) worldwide, announced it has had it with the snoops. Meanwhile, the Inquiry Committee came to the conclusion that the BND had withheld information from its oversight bodies on how broad the tapping really was. Separately, a two-part report presented to the LIBE Committee of the Parliament in Brussels focused on potential countermeasures to the "fact" of mass surveillance by intelligence agencies. And a resolution on mass surveillance was passed by the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (CoE).
Divide And Conquer: The New US Strategy To Disentangle The TPP Negotiations
Burcu Kilic & Pablo Viollier write: Political leaders in Washington and other Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) negotiating countries have set the end of May as the latest deadline for completion of the talks. The negotiations have already missed several such deadlines, so who really knows? No one. But there is something we all know: TPP raises significant concerns because negotiations are being held behind closed doors with details kept secret even from the legislatures in TPP countries.
Industries Duelling For Attention Over GIs In Trade Deals
The trade promotion authority (TPA), or fast-track, legislation proposed by three senators last week in the US Congress contains provisions that would reinforce the US position on limiting geographical indications in trade deals. At the same time, European-led industry groups held an event in Washington to highlight the advantages of GIs in trade deals.
Canada’s Budget Extends Copyright For Sound Recordings From 50 To 70 Years
Canada’s federal government 2015 budget released yesterday contains several pro-intellectual property measures aimed at boosting the economy. The measures include greater protection of confidential client-advisor communications, and the extension of copyright terms for sound recordings and performances from 50 years…
UK Industry Group Details Goals For Global Patent Harmonisation
In recent months, intellectual property rights holder groups and northern governments have been stepping up their focus on harmonising international patent law to ease procedures and lower costs. Today, an industry group in the United Kingdom articulated some of those aims.
A Look At The Huge Upswing In China Patent Filings
By Michael Sneddon While China’s reputation for producing imitations of everything from cars to computers continues to linger, it doesn’t appear to be a deterrent for foreign corporations as they increasingly seek protection for their innovations. In fact, according to…
Update On Yale/IP-Watch Effort To Open TPP Texts
Intellectual Property Watch has been working for several years to obtain more details about the intellectual property aspects of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement negotiations through a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request, and a subsequent lawsuit to enforce that request, which is being led by a team at the Media Freedom and Information Access Clinic at Yale Law School (MFIA). Today MFIA, a program of Yale's Information Society Project and Abrams Institute, released an update on the case.
Can The Internet Be Saved Without Harming Democracy?
[From The Guardian-] Citizens of the internet: here is some welcome news. Your downtrodden digital rights might be getting a well-overdue booster shot. But it comes with some warnings.
Last week in the Hague, a high-level group of 29 internet policymakers and influencers – including prominent ex-US and UK security and intelligence officials Michael Chertoff, Joseph Nye, Melissa Hathaway and David Omand – issued a clarion call for the protection and promotion of human rights online. Self-styled the Global Commission on Internet Governance, the group made this call as part of the broader objective of restoring trust and confidence in the internet.