Agreement Reached On WIPO Development Agenda, Patents; No Broadcasting Yet 30/09/2006 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment By William New Government negotiators at the World Intellectual Property Organization General Assembly have reached tentative agreement on the future of a proposed agenda for development, and for discussing global patent harmonisation. But key hurdles remain for a proposal to convene a negotiation on a broadcasters’ rights treaty. “I think it is positive,” said an […]
US Seeks Review Of WHO Publication Policy After Report On US Trade Deals 28/09/2006 by Tove Iren S. Gerhardsen for Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment By Tove Iren S. Gerhardsen A senior United States health official in Washington is urging the head of the World Health Organization to withdraw a WHO-sponsored publication that is critical of US trade policy, charging possible organisational incompetence and calling for a full review of its publication procedures. “The WHO Secretariat’s decision to publish the […]
Belgian Infringement Case Prompts Publishers’ Project On Automated Access 27/09/2006 by Dugie Standeford for Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment By Dugie Standeford for Intellectual Property Watch. Efforts by Belgian publishers’ representative Copiepresse to stop Google from displaying copyrighted content without permission have energized a global publishing industry initiative aimed at resolving the problem. With a trial set in November on claims the search engine’s news service and “cache” are infringing copyright, four major publishing […]
Interview With Gilberto Gil, Brazil’s Culture Minister 27/09/2006 by Intellectual Property Watch 2 Comments Gilberto Gil, an internationally acclaimed musician and songwriter since the 1960s, is Brazil’s Minister of Culture. Educated in his native state of Bahia, Gil has lived and travelled extensively abroad and speaks four languages fluently. He reflects the Brazilian government’s position of caution about the rapid rise of intellectual property rights policy and protection globally, […]
Should The Developing World Copy To ‘Catch Up’ With Developed Countries? 26/09/2006 by Intellectual Property Watch 2 Comments By Naana E. K. Amonoo – LL.B, LL.M (I.P). It is forbidden in the intellectual property world to condone anything to do with copying without the owner’s permission. It is of course understood that the hard work of any IP owner ought to be rewarded and acknowledged. No one is disputing that fact. However, it […]
US Patent Reform: Could 2007 Be The Year? 25/09/2006 by Sarah Stirland for Intellectual Property Watch 2 Comments By Sarah Lai Stirland for Intellectual Property Watch US information technology companies’ push to overhaul their country’s patent system made little progress in the US Congress in 2006 due to pushback from the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries. But the hiring of a trio of well-connected lobbyists with a history in the tort reform movement promises […]
Annual WIPO Assembly Faces Sensitive Policy, Administrative Issues 25/09/2006 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment By William New The top decision-makers of the many organs of the World Intellectual Property Organization gather this week with a long list of important issues before them, ranging from new treaties and new IP policies to greater accountability and ways to prevent wrong-doing in its administration. The agenda for the 25 September to 3 […]
New Intergovernmental Initiative Highlights IP Flexibilities For Drug Prices 21/09/2006 by Tove Iren S. Gerhardsen for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment By Tove Iren S. Gerhardsen A new international intergovernmental health initiative tied to airplane taxes highlights the use of flexibilities in intellectual property laws as an option for reducing drug prices. The plan is being welcomed by non-governmental organisations that have been lobbying for this point. The initiative is an international drug purchase facility and […]
The Nexus Of Cultural Heritage And Intellectual Property 21/09/2006 by Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment By Molly Torsen Over the past several decades, scholarship on the nexus between cultural heritage and intellectual property law has alternately garnered keen international attention or remained stagnant. Those jurisdictions that have a greater interest in protecting their heritage – perhaps because of its cultural importance or because of a history of misappropriation – through […]
Luz verde para el tratado de la OMPI sobre radiodifusión pese a desacuerdos 20/09/2006 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Por William New El pasado 13 de septiembre un comité clave de la Organización Mundial de la Propiedad Intelectual (OMPI) aprobó una propuesta para negociar un tratado destinado a ampliar los derechos de los organismos de radiodifusión y de difusión por cable, pese a importantes desacuerdos entre los miembros del comité. “El proyecto de propuesta […]