UK Proposes To Allow Designers To Mark Their Products With A Web Link 22/07/2015 by Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment The United Kingdom government is calling for evidence on a proposal to provide designers with an option to mark their products with a web link instead of stamping the product or attaching a label with registered design numbers to provide public notice of registered design rights.
Treaty On ‘Medicines Crime’ Not Best Response To Counterfeit/Substandard Medicines, Paper Says 22/07/2015 by Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment A recent paper by public health experts argues that a treaty on ‘medicines crime’ to combat counterfeit and substandard medicines may not be the best step forward. Rather, it proposes to form an international agreement to “ensure that all proven effective and necessary medicines are affordable, available, and of assured quality,” if the goal is to protect the interests of people and public health.
ITU Secretary General Visits Old Archrival IETF 21/07/2015 by Monika Ermert for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment PRAGUE, CZECH REPUBLIC — International Telecommunication Union Secretary General Houlin Zhao today called for more cooperation between his organisation and other standardisation bodies, including the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF).
Investor-State Cases Could Have Cost Cash-Strapped Argentina $80B, Paper Says 21/07/2015 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment A new developing country policy brief warns against use of the investor-state dispute settlement mechanism, arguing that it has a low capacity to adapt to exceptional circumstances that can afflict developing countries.
EU Commissioner Signals Support For LDC Request To Waive IP Rights Enforcement On Pharma 21/07/2015 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment European Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmström said in a recent speech that providing she has the backing of the College of Commissioners, the Council and the European Parliament, she would like to answer positively to the request by least developed countries (LDCs) to extend a particular exemption to enforce intellectual property rights on medical products as long as they remain an LDC.
Aid Agencies Hail Agreement On Access To Early Infant HIV Diagnostic Technologies 21/07/2015 by Rishi Dhir for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment An agreement entered into by a range of international organisations and others announced this week is expected to lower the price of early infant HIV diagnostic technologies by 35 percent, according to the parties.
WHO Negotiations To Continue On Non-State Actors 21/07/2015 by Intellectual Property Watch, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Third World Network reports: New Delhi, 20 July (K M Gopakumar) – Member States of the World Health Organization have decided to continue the negotiations on a Framework of Engagement with Non-State Actors (FENSA) as several key issues remain unresolved.
Cuba Says It Has Protected 5,000 US IPRs, While US Violates Its Rights 20/07/2015 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment Cuba has been trying for many years to get the United States to undo a law that prevents Cuba from defending a rum brand trademark in US courts. This week at the World Trade Organization, the Caribbean country said during this time it has dutifully protected the intellectual property rights of more than 5,000 US products, while the US has allowed violations of Cuban patents and trademarks.
Is The European Unitary Patent System On Its Way To A Tepid Start? 17/07/2015 by Monika Ermert for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment For nearly two decades, the European Union has pondered the completion of a unitary patent system (UP) and a Unitary Patent Court (UPC). But even after the European Court of Justice has ruled the UP/UPC agreement to be constitutional, users, including some big ones, remain cautious.
UNCTAD Official: Need For Policy Coherence In Local Pharmaceutical Production 17/07/2015 by Ani Mamikon for Intellectual Property Watch and Rishi Dhir for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Despite progress in recent years to boost local pharmaceutical production in developing countries, policy coherence across the countries is lacking, according to an official at the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD).