European Parliament Demands Transparency In Expert Groups, Protection For Whistleblowers 14/02/2017 by Monika Ermert for Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment The European Commission is reforming the way it populates its “expert groups” which has been criticized as unbalanced and non-transparent for years. But the European Parliament is not satisfied. In a report on its own initiative passed in Strasbourg today practically unanimously (663 in favour, 16 against, 13 abstentions), the Parliament requested the Commission make public how it decides the composition of expert groups and explain which interest groups are to be represented and how geographical and political interests will be balanced.
Year Ahead: A Rather Speculative Year In Global Trade 01/02/2017 by Monika Ermert for Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment An interesting year lies ahead for trade policymakers. With US President Donald Trump sticking to his “America First” announcement pulling back from the Trans-Pacific Partnership right away, a new trade (world) order might be in the making. In every crisis, there is opportunity, Argentinian Trade Minister Susana Malcora said in Davos during the January World Economic Forum (WEF) where the business elite otherwise traded concerns at the beginning of an unpredictable year 2017.
EU Adoption Of Marrakesh Treaty For Blind Readers Imminent After Years Of Delay? 01/02/2017 by Monika Ermert for Intellectual Property Watch 3 Comments The European Parliament Legal Committee this week did not bother to further discuss the ratification of the Marrakesh Treaty on copyright exceptions for print disabled persons. Instead, Rapporteur Max Andersson declared that he favoured putting the file to a vote right away. Andersson told Intellectual Property Watch that the parliament would adopt the report in March or latest April.
Canada-Europe Trade Agreement: One More Vote To Clear 24/01/2017 by Monika Ermert for Intellectual Property Watch 2 Comments Just a day after US President Donald Trump withdrew the United States from the Trans-Pacific Partnership, the International Trade Committee of the European Parliament passed a recommendation in favour of adopting the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) between Canada and the EU. Meanwhile, the EU Trade Commissioner said trade is not to blame and the EU will negotiate many trade deals this year.
World Economic Forum Hears Hopes And Fears: Too Early To Predict Trade War 19/01/2017 by Monika Ermert for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment It is too early to push the panic button with regard to the rise of protectionism under new US President Donald Trump, David Cote, CEO of US multinational Honeywell, said on a panel discussion at the World Economic Forum today in Davos.
WEF Davos: Who Will Own The Knowledge Produced From “Our” Data By Machines? 18/01/2017 by Monika Ermert for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Artificial intelligence has succeeded the Internet of Things or the earlier cloud mania as buzzword number one at the Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum that started today (17 January) in Davos, Switzerland. While ethical questions surrounding the intelligent machines are discussed at length and the question for regulatory steps considered, answers of who will own the knowledge created by machines or intelligent bots vary.
All General Obligations To Retain Traffic Data Found Illegal Under EU Law 21/12/2016 by Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment The European Court of Justice in Luxembourg made big news today when it ruled against indiscriminate retention of traffic and localisation data once again.
ECJ Advocate General Says EU Commission Cannot Make Trade Deals Without Member States 21/12/2016 by Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment Not all parts of the European Union-Singapore trade agreement “fall within the EU’s exclusive competence and therefore the agreement cannot be concluded without the participation of all of the Member States.” This is the result of an opinion of the European Court of Justice Advocate General Eleanor Sharpston published today.
No Deal: German Universities Prepare For Cut-Off From Elsevier Journals 16/12/2016 by Monika Ermert for Intellectual Property Watch 9 Comments After licensing negotiations between German university libraries and Elsevier failed at the beginning of the month, over 60 university libraries in Germany are preparing to be cut off from hundreds of journals of the British-Dutch publisher, after a standoff over pricing and access.
EU, Canada Meet To Discuss A New Model For Investor-State Trade Disputes 13/12/2016 by Monika Ermert for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment The European Commission and the Canadian government today and tomorrow are hosting a first meeting for talks on a new multilateral investment court. Such a court could, the European Commission explained in an announcement, become the follow-up mechanism for the existing investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS) provisions that are part of 3,200 bilateral and multilateral free trade agreements around the world.