Original news and analysis on international IP policy
A technical group at the World Health Assembly today agreed on a resolution that will increase the worldwide research and development focus on diseases that disproportionately affect developing countries. Brazil and Kenya, which have been driving the issue, welcomed the…
By Tove Iren S. Gerhardsen and William New A technical committee of the World Health Assembly on 24 May decided to wait until the next day to set up a short-term working group on two draft intellectual property resolutions, which…
A group of countries led by Brazil, India and Peru has indicated that it intends to present a text relating to the discussions at the World Trade Organization (WTO) on biodiversity “in days, not weeks” suggesting an amendment to current…
The world’s largest pharmaceutical company, Pfizer, is suing the Philippine government for having imported and registered – but not marketed – a product that is still under patent. At the same time, industry is said to be lobbying against a…
Officials holding consultations at the World Trade Organization today on whether geographical indication (GI) protection for wines and spirits should be extended to other products completed a list of questions on the issue, but made no progress on bridging differences.…
Two days of World Trade Organization consultations this week on a proposal to extend high-level protection for geographical indications beyond wines and spirits did not bring resolution in time for the WTO Trade Negotiations Committee meeting on Tuesday, sources in…
BRUSSELS – Intellectual property policy may not be divided along left-right political party lines, participants in a consumer-led conference here on the politics and ideology of intellectual property concluded yesterday. On 20 March one of the debates on intellectual property…
BRUSSELS – A debate on intellectual property and the “knowledge commons” started out with a review of rhetoric and ideology here today but soon got more heated as the discussion turned to examples from real life, such as the patentability…
By William New and Tove Iren S. Gerhardsen The European Union on Friday continued its fight at the World Trade Organization for a binding register of traded products that are protected because their names and character derive from places, often…
Key delegations on opposite sides of a proposal at the World Trade Organization to higher protection for geographical indication (GIs) beyond wines and spirits again listened to each other’s arguments today, but neither camp moved closer to compromise, according to…