Original news and analysis on international IP policy
The fate of the World Intellectual Property Organization committee dedicated to finding solutions to protect traditional knowledge, generic resources, and folklore is being actively discussed informally at the organisation's general assembly.
Negotiations for new global policies on intellectual property has become more challenging due to a greater competition in innovation, knowledge asymmetries, and the push for bilateral and regional treaties, the head of the World Intellectual Property Organization said today.
This week, the World Intellectual Property Organization annual General Assemblies will set the priorities and direction for the organisation for the year to come. The Assemblies also have before it approval of WIPO's budget for the next biennium 2016/2017.
Collective management organisations have often been the subject of criticism both from artists and end users. Some international federations have set up professional rules, but there is no international standard. The World Intellectual Property Organization is working to set up a voluntary international recognition of good practice for those organisations.
It is a healthy trend that the awareness on GI is on the rise in India. However, the misuse of GI legislation also is rampant. Recent past has witnessed many instances of inappropriate GI Registrations, writes Praveen Raj.
Following the scandalous July leak of private information about millions of users of the secret dating website Ashley Madison, a website appeared ostensibly offering people to dialogue about the leak. And Ashley Madison used intellectual property law to defeat the new site, under a decision of the World Intellectual Property Organization domain dispute procedures announced today.
NEW YORK – As some of the most powerful people on earth prepare to gather here later this week at the United Nations to discuss the biggest problems and opportunities facing humankind for the next 15 years, mention of a key issue underlying many themes – intellectual property – is hard to find. Also hard to find is reference to the UN agency responsible for the issue, the World Intellectual Property Organization.
In a couple of weeks, the World Intellectual Property Organization will hold its annual General Assembly. The African Group is asking the Assembly transform the committee devoted to finding a way to protect genetic resources, traditional knowledge and folklore from misappropriation into a standing committee. This would allow the committee to avoid seeking the renewal of its existence every two years, which it faces again at this year’s Assembly.
Members of a World Intellectual Property Organization committee last week reached some tough agreements on issues relating to the next two years’ program and budget, but had to pass on unfinished work to the full WIPO membership, which will meet in two weeks.
After four years of talks, committee members at the World Intellectual Property Organization have agreed on a definition for what constitutes an expenditure on development in the UN agency.