New Draft Text Shows Progress On WIPO Treaty On Books For The Print-Disabled 25/06/2013 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch 2 Comments Marrakesh, Morocco – Negotiators were still hard at work here at press time trying to reach the deadline of tomorrow set by the president of the diplomatic conference, to get agreed language to a drafting committee tasked with delivering a treaty text. The treaty is intended to confer on visually impaired people a wider access to books by providing exceptions to copyrighted works in special format.
Special Report: European Dialogue On Internet Governance: Regulating Cyberspace After Prism? 24/06/2013 by Monika Ermert for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Lisbon, Portugal – The surveillance affair around the US Prism programme left its mark on the 2013 European Dialogue on Internet Governance (EuroDIG) in Lisbon last week. Legal experts at the sixth edition of the European version of the Internet Governance Forum pondered possible legal reactions, companies revealed as targets or (unwilling) partners of the programme tried to limit the damage, while Swedish ambassador Olaf Ehrenkrona admitted that state surveillance programs need to be reconsidered given the ease of mass surveillance in the era of a public internet space.
WIPO Negotiators Reach Breakthrough On “3-Step Test” In Treaty For Blind 24/06/2013 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch 11 Comments Marrakesh, Morocco – A breakthrough was reached over the weekend in the World Intellectual Property Organization negotiations to provide more access to visually impaired people, according to participating sources. Agreement appears to have been struck on the controversial issue of restrictions to the exceptions to copyright that the treaty is proposing to establish.
WIPO Negotiators Urged To Speed Up, As Musician Stevie Wonder Steps Up 21/06/2013 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment Pop star Stevie Wonder was a surprise guest this morning at the plenary session of the World Intellectual Property Organization diplomatic conference in Marrakesh concocting a treaty to facilitate access for blind people to books. The president of the diplomatic conference also exhorted delegates to bridge gaps and reach consensus.
Members Of US Congress Seek Pressure On India Over IP Rights 20/06/2013 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment A large portion of the United States Congress this week signed on to a letter to President Obama criticising India for its treatment of intellectual property rights.
Experts Propose Principles For IP Provisions In Bilateral, Regional Agreements 20/06/2013 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment For several years, research at the Max Planck Institute for Intellectual Property and Competition Law (MPI) – in collaboration with experts from all over the world – has examined the trend of bilateral and regional agreements that include provisions on the protection and enforcement of intellectual property rights.
Visually Impaired, Civil Society, Industry Defend Their Stakes In Marrakesh 20/06/2013 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment This week’s World Intellectual Property Organization Marrakesh Diplomatic Conference, anticipated to deliver an international treaty allowing visually impaired people wider access to books, is also an arena where different stakeholders hope to influence the debate. Civil society calls for a practical treaty that really works on the ground, while industry insists that safeguards to protect the integrity of the international copyright laws be included in the treaty.
WIPO VIP Treaty: Opening Statements Lay Out Differences 20/06/2013 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Displays of good intentions peppered the two first days of World Intellectual Property Organization negotiations on treaty facilitating access to books for visually impaired people. However, countries pleading for flexibility reaffirmed their previous positions. Developed countries seeking to preserve the international copyright system, and developing countries assuring that the treaty is not jeopardising this system.
New Draft Text Issued By WIPO Negotiators For Visually Impaired Treaty 19/06/2013 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment World Intellectual Property Organization delegates this week have launched into negotiations expected to yield the first treaty creating exceptions and limitations to copyright for the benefit of visually impaired people. Many delegations have said much work remained to be done in the next ten days to breach differences. A new text was released this evening on commercial availability.
EIFL Guide To The European Orphan Works Directive 19/06/2013 by Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment A guide to key provisions and limitations of the European Union directive on permitted uses of orphan works – those whose creators cannot be found – has been published by the Electronic Information for Libraries (EIFL).