Council Of Europe Weighs Future; Drafts Counterfeit Medicines Convention 09/10/2009 by Monika Ermert for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Sixty years after its foundation, the Council of Europe is reconsidering its role and place in the architecture of European institutions. One new development is the drafting of a convention against medicines counterfeiting.
Global Oversight For Internet; US Role In Core Infrastructure Unchanged 01/10/2009 by Monika Ermert for Intellectual Property Watch 3 Comments A mere “affirmation of commitments” (AoC) between the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) and the United States Department of Commerce has replaced the decade-old joint project agreement in place in different forms since ICANN started technical coordination of names and numbers on the net in 1998.
ICANN’s New US Contract And New Top Level Domains – It’s Not Over 29/09/2009 by Monika Ermert for Intellectual Property Watch 2 Comments With a day to go before the joint project agreement between the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) and the United States Department of Commerce (DoC) is set to expire, calls for continuous US oversight role have been reiterated by US politicians and private-sector representatives who reason that this oversight is especially needed in the face of the planned introduction of new internet top-level domains like .shop.
20,000 March In Berlin As Protests Erupt Against European Surveillance 12/09/2009 by Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment Over twenty thousand people today marched through the German capital of Berlin protesting against the rise of surveillance legislation in their country and the European Union in recent years. Under the motto “freedom not fear,” 167 organisations, including major trade unions, associations of lawyers, judges, journalists, doctors and civil rights activists, called on the German […]
Indian High Court Rejects Bayer Complaint For Patent Linkage 21/08/2009 by Monika Ermert for Intellectual Property Watch and Kaitlin Mara for Intellectual Property Watch 3 Comments Indian generics manufacturer Cipla can get marketing approval for its generic cancer treatment Soranib, the Delhi High Court ruled Tuesday, and the Indian drug regulatory authority does not have to check its patent status first. The court this week rejected a complaint by drug multinational Bayer against the Union of India, the Drug Controller General of India and generic drug producer Cipla. Bayer sought a court order requiring DCGI to consider the patent status of kidney cancer drug, sorafenib tosylate (sold under the brand name Nexavar), before granting marketing approval for a generic version of the drug. At issue was whether it is legitimate to link a potential violation of IP rights to processes regulating a drug’s entry onto the market that are generally based on drug quality, efficacy and safety.
G8: Amid Talks Of Climate, Economy, Food And Health Lies IP & Innovation 09/07/2009 by Monika Ermert for Intellectual Property Watch 2 Comments Leaders of the seven biggest economies and Russia (G8) at their annual summit this week in L’Aquila, Italy have made very cautious commitments with regard to the top issue, climate change, but views on intellectual property rights enforcement began to become clear on the second day. The summit so far has addressed issues related to trade, development, terrorism, and also innovation and IP. Statements in the leaders’ Wednesday declaration with regard to intellectual property called for a firm push for the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA), which is unchanged from the past. But the G8 IP Expert Group (IPEG) on Thursday published the results of its discussion in which they went into more detail on some issues.
Special Report – ICANN: New CEO, New Government Role, Accelerated International Domains 06/07/2009 by Monika Ermert for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment With three important processes coming to a head at the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) this year, it is difficult not to overlook some changes in the private body, which oversees the internet domain name system. At ICANN’s recent board meeting, the appointment of a shiny new CEO, former United States Homeland Security Department cybersecurity director Rod Beckstrom, drew attention away from top issues, which include the introduction of new top-level domains, ongoing institutional reform, and the looming September expiration of the ICANN-US government agreement.
Germany Builds Infrastructure To Block The Internet 19/06/2009 by Monika Ermert for Intellectual Property Watch 3 Comments The German Parliament on Thursday evening passed legislation that obliges internet service providers (ISPs) to filter websites allegedly containing child abuse material, by a vote of 389 to 146. The vote followed fierce debate about the secret filtering list to be put together by the German Federal Police and transmitted to ISPs once a day with only occasional checks by a five-member monitoring body. Opposition parties joined civil rights organisations in warning that Germany is introducing blocking architecture that was extensible and could be used to “censor“ other content without due process.
Conseil de l’Europe : l’accès à l’internet est un droit fondamental 12/06/2009 by Monika Ermert for Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment L’argument souvent utilisé par les législateurs contre la communication Internet qui veut que ce qui est valable dans l’univers physique l’est aussi en ligne a été utilisé par le Conseil de l’Europe dans une nouvelle résolution concernant les droits fondamentaux en ligne.
Council Of Europe: Access To Internet Is A Fundamental Right 08/06/2009 by Monika Ermert for Intellectual Property Watch 8 Comments What applies offline is also valid online – an argument often used against internet communication by legislators – has been turned around to underline fundamental rights on the internet in a new resolution of the Council of Europe.