Original news and analysis on international IP policy
As the World Intellectual Property Organization prepares to host high-level negotiations next week to amend an agreement protecting appellations of origins to include geographical indications, a number of WIPO member states are asking that the whole WIPO membership be allowed to participate on an equal footing to the negotiations, not only the 28 members of the treaty.
In Chile, pharmaceutical patents are almost exclusively the domain of foreign companies. Only a subset of drugs is protected by patents, while a much larger number of products is protected by trademarks, a study finds, offering for the first time empirical evidence on the use of primary and secondary patents in Chile.
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.
At the close of the session of the World Intellectual Property Organization Committee on Development and Intellectual Property (CDIP) last week, delegates left on a positive note. Despite not achieving concrete results on several issues, the meeting was described as encouraging by some participants. Technical assistance remained one of the prickly issues, as well as the mechanism for WIPO committees to report on their implementation of the Development Agenda.
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…
Among the outstanding issues at the World Intellectual Property Organization is how WIPO committees report to the General Assembly on their implementation of the organisation's Development Agenda Recommendations. At this week's meeting on the issue, a new proposal submitted by Mexico attempts to breach differences.
Geographical indications can provide socio-economic benefits for developing countries, said speakers at a side event to the World Intellectual Property Organization Committee on Development and Intellectual Property (CDIP) this week.
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.
What lies ahead for music in the digital economy was the subject of a roundtable today at the World Intellectual Property Organization. Inaugurating a photo exhibition on the same theme, the United States ambassador stressed the importance of copyright. The roundtable took place on 21 April and was one of the events organised by WIPO celebrating the upcoming World IP Day on 26 April.
Music is the chosen theme of the World Intellectual Property Organization to celebrate this year’s World Intellectual Property Day on 26 April. The organisation has a series of events planned starting next week, and in particular a roundtable on the future of the music industry with a panel of speakers from across the world.