Is US Overstating Health/Safety Risks Of Counterfeits? 08/05/2014 by Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment A new analysis shows that while the United States government suggests intellectual property enforcement efforts at the border are largely aimed at protecting Americans from health and safety risks of counterfeit goods, the real story is different.
Ecuador Signs Marrakesh Treaty On Copyright Exceptions For Visually Impaired 08/05/2014 by Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Today at the World Intellectual Property Organization, Ecuador signed the Marrakesh Treaty to Facilitate Access to Published Works for Persons Who Are Blind, Visually Impaired or Otherwise Print Disabled, which is administered by WIPO.
Members Agree Details Of Re-Appointment Of WIPO Director General 08/05/2014 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment The World Intellectual Property Organization General Assembly today approved the report of a working group tasked with drafting the conditions of re-appointment of the WIPO director general, who was re-elected today.
Gurry Re-Elected By Praiseful WIPO Membership; Some Ask For Transparent, Accountable Governance 08/05/2014 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch 5 Comments Some five minutes is all it took this morning for the World Intellectual Property Organization General Assembly to re-elect Francis Gurry at the head of WIPO for the next six years. All delegations taking the floor congratulated the director general and underlined the achievements under his current mandate. However, the matter of allegations by one of the WIPO deputy directors general is being investigated.
Could The WIPO General Assembly Reject Francis Gurry’s Nomination? 07/05/2014 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch 7 Comments Tomorrow, World Intellectual Property Organization members decide whether to re-elect Francis Gurry as director general for another six years. The decision was complicated in recent weeks by detailed allegations of wrongdoing by Gurry put forward by Gurry’s deputy, raising questions about member states’ responsibility in investigating such claims.
Council Of Europe Acts To Protect Whistleblowers 06/05/2014 by Monika Ermert for Intellectual Property Watch 2 Comments The 47-member Council of Europe (CoE) recently made a move on whistleblower protection. But it remains to be seen what impact it will have.
FSFE Urges EU To Weigh In Against DRM Inclusion In HTML Web Standard 06/05/2014 by Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment The Free Software Foundation Europe (FSFE) today wrote to several European Union commissioners in an appeal for them to weigh in against the standardisation of the Encrypted Media Extension (EME) for the new HTML version, HTML5.
Panel Appointed For WTO Mega-Case On Australia Tobacco Packaging 06/05/2014 by Intellectual Property Watch 3 Comments World Trade Organization Director General Roberto Azevêdo yesterday appointed three panellists to examine the dispute against an Australian public health measure requiring tobacco products to be sold in plain packaging in the country. A decision in the case will be forthcoming in six months.
Digitisation Projects For Orphan And Out-Of-Commerce Works Presented At WIPO 06/05/2014 by Jos̩phine De Ruyck for Intellectual Property Watch and Julia Fraser for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Digitisation of copyrighted works is in growing demand, and books are increasingly being made widely available in digital form. Two forms of works however Рorphan and out-of-commerce works Рare in danger of missing out, said speakers at a recent World Intellectual Property Organization event, and there is a risk of forever losing an important part of our cultural heritage embedded in these works. Another panel, meanwhile, illustrated that laws on copyright and licensing also present obstacles to cross-border use of digitised works by universities, libraries and archives.
Librarians, Archivists: Why An International Solution Is Needed For Copyright Exceptions 06/05/2014 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch 4 Comments Last week, the World Intellectual Property Organization copyright committee ended without agreement on the conclusions of the meeting or its future work, to the dismay of librarians and archivists associations. During the week, numerous representatives of these communities gave vigorous accounts of why a treaty is vital to grant them exceptions to copyright.