Original news and analysis on international IP policy
By Paul Garwood More technical assistance to developing countries, closer collaboration between UN agencies and overhauling the World Intellectual Property Organization were among calls made during a conference of leading players in the intellectual property community held Monday. The conference,…
By Catherine Saez
In order to explore the relationship between intellectual property rights and life science innovations, the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) is organising policy symposia to identify and clarify the intellectual property dimension in the life sciences.
In a world where biotechnology is booming and new technological frontiers are being crossed, new challenges arise such as ethical questions relating to the implication and applications of biological research. Patent agencies, industry and civil society were invited on 4 September to share their thoughts and experience on the use of the intellectual property system in bioethics.
As Antony Taubman, acting director of the WIPO Global IP Issues Division described it, biotechnology is based on living organisms which raises distinct ethical questions.
Por Tove Iren S. Gerhardsen Según trascendió, una incipiente propuesta para establecer una Organización Panafricana de la Propiedad Intelectual (PAIPO) ya provoca oposición y preocupación, como es el caso de quienes temen que África se esté comprometiendo a adoptar niveles…
By Paul Garwood Kenya’s Parliament has rejected a proposal to revoke the government’s powers to issue compulsory licenses to manufacture products such as generic medicines without patent holder approval, a move welcomed Friday by supporters of universal access to pharmaceuticals.…
By Liza Porteus for Intellectual Property Watch
NEW YORK - Popular search engines like Google are proving to be formidable foes to trademark holders trying to maintain a strong grip on their property in keyword advertising on the Internet, experts said on 10 September.
There are numerous search engines people can use to look up information online, but Google is not only the most popular, it is also involved in a litany of lawsuits involving online ads and trademarks. So far, Google has prevailed in US courts, but has lost similar trademark cases in France.
By Steven Seidenberg for Intellectual Property Watch Amid complaints over patent quality and a rising backlog of applications at the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), the agency has been hit with a lawsuit alleging that its deputy director…
By Paul Garwood Kenyan lawmakers are set to debate proposed amendments to a bill that, if passed, would prevent the government from issuing compulsory licenses to produce urgently needed medicines without seeking approval from the patent holder. The amendments, which…
By Liza Porteus for Intellectual Property Watch NEW YORK – A supplementary international patent search will be introduced and likely approved during the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) General Assembly meeting later this month, WIPO Deputy Director Francis Gurry told…
By Monika Ermert for Intellectual Property Watch LINZ, AUSTRIA – How distant is the realisation of a “prevision” and prevention culture as portrayed in the Steven Spielberg movie Minority Report? Telling the future is not as far off as critical…
By Dugie Standeford for Intellectual Property Watch
New rules by the US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) governing the continuation of patent applications will wreak havoc in the biotechnology and high-tech sectors, according to some experts. The regulations, announced in August as part of a USPTO effort to boost patent quality, and effective on 1 November, are already being challenged in court.
In addition, US patent practice changes could arise from a 20 August judicial decision setting a new standard for determining when patent infringement is wilful or done knowingly.