Original news and analysis on international IP policy
By Kaitlin Mara Delegates are buckling down on key negotiating issues in the final days they have to decide whether or not there can be a high-level meeting of government ministers in December, and intellectual property-related issues appear still to…
By Kaitlin Mara Proponents of amending the World Trade Organization intellectual property agreement to increase protection for biodiversity and for geographically-specific products are insisting Director General Pascal Lamy himself lead the process for resolving the issues. Meetings on intellectual property…
Par Kaitlin Mara Les partisans d’une modification de l’Accord de l’OMC sur les droits de propriété intellectuelle ont clairement montré cette semaine qu’ils n’entendaient pas céder un pouce de terrain sur l’extension de la protection des indications géographiques et l’utilisation…
Por Kaitlin Mara No han cesado los esfuerzos por enmendar el acuerdo de la Organización Mundial del Comercio (OMC) en materia de derechos de propiedad intelectual, tal como lo dejaron en claro esta semana los partidarios de una ampliación de…
By Kaitlin Mara The push to amend the World Trade Organization agreement on intellectual property rights has not receded, as made clear this week by proponents of wider protection for geographical indications and using the patent system to safeguard biodiversity…
By Wagdy Sawahel for Intellectual Property Watch In a bid to harness the significant value of geographical indications to the economies of the 22 member states of the Arab League, an Arab Society for Geographical Indications (ASGI) has been proposed.…
By Catherine Saez
Inducing compliance, after a favourable ruling of the World Trade Organization (WTO) Dispute Settlement Body, from countries which breached international trade rules can prove difficult, especially for developing countries. For many of them, retaliation in a trade sector unrelated to the one affected by the violation of WTO rules may be the only viable option, although the major obstacles are not legal but political, according to speakers at a roundtable held on Friday in Geneva.
By Dugie Standeford and Kaitlin Mara The World Trade Organization Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights Agreement (TRIPS) is being “recalibrated” as developing and developed countries challenge old assumptions, Vanderbilt University law professor Daniel Gervais said this week. The first…
By Kaitlin Mara Movement is beginning to be seen at the World Intellectual Property Organization body tasked with discussing protection for traditional knowledge and folklore as informal meetings – and, in particular, bilateral meetings between the African Group and other…
By William New Whether the World Trade Organization director general position will be up for grabs in the new year remains a question, as current DG Pascal Lamy is deciding by December whether to run for the post again. Meanwhile,…