Original news and analysis on international IP policy
“Ex Africa semper aliquid novi”, which can be freely translated from Latin to mean “there is always something new coming out of Africa,” said Pliny, the ancient Roman writer and scholar. Presumably then, as is the case now, the concept of “new” included an expression of sarcasm and deprecation as in “absurd, nonsensical and ridiculous.” Well, Pliny has been proved right once again, writes Prof. Owen Dean.
As some developed countries prepared to ink a secret plurilateral trade agreement against rampant global piracy and counterfeiting in recent days, leading emerging economies and non-governmental groups warned the World Intellectual Property Organization that such outside agreements need to respect broader societal impacts of IP rights enforcement or risk abuses of international rules on trade and development.
White & Case law firm is looking to hire two lawyers for its World Trade Organization (WTO) practice in Geneva, to work on trade areas including intellectual property rights.
Access to the internet and internet services, such as Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter, is often thought about in terms of freedom of expression. The so-called Arab Spring reinforced that link as governments limited, censored and restricted the internet in an effort to control communication.
But freedom of information and open access to the internet is not only a human rights issue; it is also of vital importance to the world economy. This was the key message that emerged from “Blocking the Free Flow of Information: A New Trade Barrier,” a session held at the World Trade Organization’s Public Forum on 21 September.
While the global loss of biodiversity is widely recognised, the question of whether the influence of intellectual property rights on the protection of biodiversity is positive or negative does not achieve such consensus. A discussion among specialists on 14 September showed that clear evidence is lacking about the impact of IP rights. Some said the IP system as it stands might be ill-fitted to answer the needs of this particular field.
The theme of this year’s World Trade Organization Public Forum, to be held at the organization’s headquarters in Geneva from 19-21 September, is “Seeking Answers to Global Trade Challenges.” Recognizing the widening gap between existing trade rules and the realities of the 21st century, the forum focus is on ensuring that WTO policy keeps pace with today’s fast changing world.
The Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement negotiated last year will be open for signature for two years, until the first of May 2013. But while this looks like a long time, it likely will be needed by the 37 negotiating governments (including the United States, Japan, South Korea and the 27 European Union members) to iron out problems on their way to implementing what some rights owners welcomed as a possible new “gold standard” for the enforcement of intellectual property rights.
The annual summer shuffle of the mission staff in Geneva has been particularly active this year for those with responsibility for intellectual property rights, with several key diplomats packing their bags, and new ones arriving.
India and the European Union announced a written agreement yesterday that puts more conditions on EU customs authorities before they can stop shipments of generic pharmaceuticals passing through Europe. No longer is the existence of an EU patent on passing generics sufficient cause to stop shipments. The agreement suspends a World Trade Organization dispute started by India last year.
The Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA) under negotiation by a group of countries including those in the European Union is more ambitious than current EU law and risks problems for access to medicines, concluded a recent study commissioned by the European Parliament Committee on International Trade. But the study stops short of calling for a flat rejection of the agreement.