US Congressional Leaders Blast WIPO Lisbon Treaty Negotiations

The top bipartisan members of the United States Senate and House of Representatives responsible for trade, legal and intellectual property issues today sent a strongly worded letter to World Intellectual Property Organization Director General Francis Gurry demanding that all WIPO members be permitted to fully participate in an upcoming treaty negotiation and raising concern about the trade and economic impact of currently proposed text. The treaty negotiation among a small group of WIPO members is expected to raise the level of protection of geographical indications, which are a key dividing point between Europe and the United States.

Stakeholders Give Opposing Views On GIs In EU-US Trade Agreement

Geographical indications – product names deriving from geographical origin or certain characteristics – are increasingly on the table when trade negotiations include Europeans, who are trying to recover names long used around the world. In a recent stakeholder event for the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP), both sides of the GI issue made their case.

UK Defence Science And Tech Lab To Offer IP Royalty-Free Licences

The Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl) has announced it will participate in a plan for sharing some of its intellectual property for research royalty-free, making it the first United Kingdom government agency to do so.

European Parliament Votes For Renewal Of Mandate For Internet Governance Forum

The European Parliament today adopted a resolution calling on the UN General Assembly to renew the mandate of the Internet Governance Forum (IGF), while strengthening its resources and the multi-stakeholder model of internet governance.

United States, Japan To Join International Design System At WIPO

On 13 February, the United States and Japan will deposit their instruments of accession to the Geneva Act of July 2, 1999 (the Geneva Act) of the WIPO’s Hague Agreement Concerning the International Registration of Industrial Designs (the Hague Agreement). A ceremony will be held at the World Intellectual Property Organization, which manages the agreement.

Political Windows Open And Close, Says ICANN President; Seeks End Of Prep For IANA Transition

At the opening of this week’s 52nd meeting of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) in Singapore, the ICANN leadership supported by former President Bill Clinton aide Ira Magaziner, pushed for urgency in finalising the proposal for the future oversight of the private names and numbers regime.

Copyright Policy And The Right To Science And Culture

Reposted from Afro-IP and infojustice.org: A report entitled 'Copyright policy and the right to science and culture' authored by the UN Special Rapporteur in the field of cultural rights, Farida Shaheed, has been released, writes Prof. Carolyn Ncube.

ANEPI IP News: Tres Cerveceros Y Una Marca (Three Brewers And A Brand)

Welcome to (ANEPI), the first Intellectual Property News Agency of Ecuador. The Agencia de Noticias Especializada en Propiedad Intelectual (ANEPI) publishes news, analysis, interviews, feature articles, a weekly update and more on Ecuador and the region, at Articles are…

US Challenges For Biotech In 2015 – An Interview With BIO’s Hans Sauer

The biotechnology industry is closely watching developments in the United States that could impact the industry in 2015. These include the regulatory framework for biosimilars, possible patent legislation, post-grant review procedure, and the consequences of the recent Supreme Court ruling banning the patenting of human genes. Hans Sauer, Deputy General Counsel for Intellectual Property at the Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO), recently spoke with Intellectual Property Watch’s Catherine Saez. Sauer was asked to lay out the main developments to watch in the coming year.