WIPO Members Reach Tentative Deal On TK Treaties; External Offices Mired 27/09/2013 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch 2 Comments World Intellectual Property Organization members this evening reached a hard-won preliminary agreement on a path to a high-level negotiation of treaties or other instruments for the protection of traditional knowledge, traditional cultural expressions and genetic resources. The tentative deal, reached in informal meetings, creates an intensive work programme for the next year and a final decision in September 2014. The plan will have to go before the full WIPO membership in plenary as soon as Monday.
US Ambassador: WIPO Needs More Balance Toward Rightsholders 26/09/2013 by Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment This week, US Ambassador to the UN Betty King told Intellectual Property Watch that WIPO is still out of balance – against intellectual property rights holders.
WIPO Approves 15 New Observers, Including DNDi, COHRED; Pirate Parties Rejected 25/09/2013 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch 2 Comments Member governments of the UN World Intellectual Property Organization today approved 15 new observers to the organisation, including three international organisations, and a range of nongovernmental organisations such as two significant public health-oriented groups. But two groups were rejected, including the high-profile Pirate Parties International. Separately, the member governments of the important WIPO Program and Budget Committee were also announced today.
UN Office of Human Rights Commissioner Seminar On Right To Enjoy Benefits Of Scientific Progress 24/09/2013 by Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) will hold a seminar on the right to enjoy the benefits of scientific progress and its applications in Geneva next week.
Indonesia Becomes Fifth To File WTO Case Against Australia Tobacco Plain-Packaging 22/09/2013 by Intellectual Property Watch 3 Comments Indonesia has become the fifth country to initiate dispute settlement procedures at the World Trade Organization challenging an Australian public health law requiring tobacco products to be sold in plain packages as a way to discourage their use.
Negotiators, Stakeholders Tell Tale Of WIPO Marrakesh Treaty Negotiation, Look To Implementation 20/09/2013 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch 2 Comments Several negotiators and other stakeholders participating in last June’s successful negotiation of an international treaty to ease access to reading material for blind and visually impaired people recently gathered in Washington, DC to look back on the remarkable and at-times bitter talks. Months later, not all agree on certain historical details, such as the US position, but all agree it was a significant accomplishment.
Members Of US Congress Urge US To Oppose Re-Election Of WIPO Director Gurry 20/09/2013 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch 7 Comments A handful of influential members of the United States Congress have sent a letter to US Secretary of State John Kerry, urging the Obama administration not to support the re-election of World Intellectual Property Organization Director General Francis Gurry.
Nearly Half Of All US Patent Cases Filed In Delaware Or Eastern Texas 19/09/2013 by Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment More than 45 percent of all patent lawsuits in the United States in 2013 have been filed in two locations, with Delaware taking top spot over the Eastern District of Texas, according to a mid-year analysis.
Parliament Member Named IP Adviser To UK Prime Minister 18/09/2013 by Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment A member of the UK Parliament active in promoting intellectual property rights has been named the UK prime minister’s adviser on IP with a focus on enforcement.
Motion Picture Association Study Finds Search Engines Complicit In Piracy 18/09/2013 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment A new study released today by the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) in the company of members of the United States Congress found that internet search engines play a key role in user access to copyright infringing content online. The copyright industry study will be used to make the case that search engine companies, such as Google, need to take more responsibility in deterring use of unauthorised content without compensation to the rightsholders.