Music Copyright 101: A Brief Rundown Of Legal Status In The United States 10/02/2016 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment “The world of music rights is divided into two major segments: compositions and sound recordings,” said Kenneth Steinthal, partner, King & Spalding, San Francisco, who opened a panel at Yale Law School last week with a baseline understanding of music copyright. Steinthal gave a textbook rundown of the complicated status of music copyright that puts […]
Performer Lady Gaga (And Her Mom) Defend Internet Domain 09/02/2016 by Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Well-known performer Lady Gaga successfully gained ownership of a web address in the name of her foundation, according to a World Intellectual Property Organization document released today. Image Credits: Michael Spencer
Vision, Urgency Of UN High-Level Panel On Access To Medicines Begins To Take Shape 05/02/2016 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch 4 Comments NEW YORK — It came as a surprise to some when the United Nations Secretary General’s office announced in November the setting up of a high level panel to urgently address access to medicines and other health technologies. After all, UN agencies in Geneva, most notably the World Health Organization, have been working on these issues for years. Yesterday at the UN in New York, an event was held to explain some of the vision and urgency behind the setting up of the panel, which includes an expert committee of representatives of some 10 international organisations and others. It also includes an open online call for contributed ideas until 18 February, and two public hearings.
Special Feature: WHO Still On Trail Of New Financing For R&D For Poor Populations’ Medical Needs 04/02/2016 by Catherine Saez and William New, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment World Health Organization members are expected to meet this spring to assess progress and discuss potential solutions to the lack of financing for research and development for diseases affecting primarily developing countries. The WHO Executive Board last week discussed and noted a report by the WHO secretariat for the preparation of the open-ended meeting. The exact date of the meeting is not certain, according to WHO officials, but would likely be in March or April.
WHO Report: 45 Million New Jobs In Health Workforce By 2030 01/02/2016 by Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment A new report from the World Health Organization says there will be 45 million new jobs in the health workforce worldwide by the end of the UN Sustainable Development Goals in 2030. But most of the new jobs will be created in upper-middle and high-income nations.
Special Feature: Process For 2017 Election Of New WHO Director General 01/02/2016 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch 2 Comments The pressures of running the world’s highest profile public health agency in trying times (new outbreaks, mass migration and other challenges, with uncertain funding) could make the job of debatable attractiveness, but rumours in the World Health Organization hallways this week are that many possible candidates are likely to be considered to vie for head of the United Nations agency in Geneva. But the election process itself was just finalised for the changeover to occur in mid-2017, so it is too early to start naming possible candidates. The following is a look at the process leading to the next head of the WHO.
Study, Panel Stimulate Thinking About Public-Private Partnerships 28/01/2016 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment A new study released this week in Geneva provides insights into public-private partnerships (PPPs) with a special focus on China and India, while a panel of health experts discussing the report highlighted the importance of such partnerships.
Panels Look At IP Considerations In Representing Creative Talent 19/01/2016 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment NEW YORK – At a conference of hundreds of performers and agents in a hotel perched on Times Square this week, panellists told some interesting stories about intellectual property rights and protecting – or failing to protect – creations and performances.
Council Of Europe Guidelines For Network Neutrality To Protect Freedom Of Expression, Privacy 13/01/2016 by Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment The Council of Europe (CoE), the intergovernmental regional group that includes the European Union, today called on European governments protect the principle of network neutrality at the national level. The member countries adopted guidelines on protecting and promoting the right to freedom of expression and the right to privacy related to network neutrality.
TPP, India Most-Read IP-Watch Stories Of 2015 11/01/2016 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment The most-read stories of 2015 on the Intellectual Property Watch website fairly reflected the trends of the year, with the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement, India’s evolving intellectual property rights policies, European Patent Office patents on conventional vegetables, biologics, 3D printing, and some pop culture issues leading the way. In the coming weeks, IP-Watch will review in-depth what’s in store for 2016, already underway. But for now, let’s take a look at last year’s highlights.