A Look At The UNAIDS Board Debate On IP And Medicines; Outcome Fell Short For Some 12/12/2016 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment The discussion on intellectual property-related barriers to access to medicines was one of the most contentious points of the 39th meeting of the UNAIDS governing board last week. After hours of negotiations, the board agreed that the organisation will keep working on the issue. But developing countries and civil society would have preferred a stronger mandate, according to representatives.
Open Source Software A Core Competency For Effective Tech M&A 09/12/2016 by Guest contributor for Intellectual Property Watch 3 Comments Imagine your company just acquired its competitor for $100 million. Now imagine the company’s most important asset – its proprietary software – is subject to third-party license conditions that require the proprietary software to be distributed free of charge or in source code form. Or, imagine these license conditions are discovered late in the diligence process, and the cost to replace the offending third-party software will costs tens of thousands of dollars and take months to remediate. Both scenarios exemplify the acute, distinct and often overlooked risks inherent to the commercial use of open source software. An effective tech M&A attorney must appreciate these risks and be prepared to take the steps necessary to mitigate or eliminate them.
TPP May Be Dead – But Its Impact Lingers 06/12/2016 by Intellectual Property Watch 3 Comments Despite the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) being – to all-intents-and-purposes – dead in the water, pursuit of some of the most egregious objectives of the corporate interests driving the TPP agenda rolls on. Pharma is persisting in its push for countries to adopt not just TRIPS-Plus, but in some cases even TPP-Plus intellectual property rules – presumably groundwork for the later emergence of a ‘son-of-TPP’ agreement, three authors write.
Helping Patenters In A Sea Of PAEs: Interview With LOT Network’s Ken Seddon 01/12/2016 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment Patent assertion entity (PAE) activity has skyrocketed in the past decade and much discussion has occurred around what to do in response to patent holders whose strategy is more focused on legal battles than innovating. One notable group has risen up to bring together global companies to address the PAE issue with a novel sharing approach. In an interview with Intellectual Property Watch, Ken Seddon, CEO and President of LOT Network, talks about the group’s rapid growth, what’s coming next, and how not to bring a squirt gun to a nuclear fight.
New US Copyright Rule Sets Trap For Online Firms 25/11/2016 by Steven Seidenberg for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment The US Copyright Office is supposed to balance the interests of copyright owners with the interests of everyone else. However, the Office’s latest regulation, which takes effect 1 December, may be anything but fair and balanced. It could, according to critics, strip Facebook, YouTube, and other online companies of a vital statutory safe harbor, thus making these companies liable when their users post infringing material online. Online companies could face billions in infringement damages, driving them out of business.
WHO Director Candidates Nabarro, Szócska Speak On Medicines Prices And IP 22/11/2016 by Alexandra Nightingale for Intellectual Property Watch and William New Leave a Comment Candidates from around the world vying to be the next director general of the World Health Organization in recent weeks have presented their views to member states on a range of public health issues. Two of the six candidates answered a question put to them by Intellectual Property Watch relating to medicines prices, innovation and intellectual property. Here are their answers.
Six Candidates For WHO Director General Lay Out Their Views 10/11/2016 by Peter Kenny for Intellectual Property Watch and William New 3 Comments Funding, universal health, multisectoral work and access to medicines were among the issues addressed at the recent candidates’ forum of the World Health Organization in Geneva as part of the process to choose the next director general of the UN health agency. Candidates spoke on how to fund the organisation in its quest for universal health care and response to emergencies.
WHO Makes Headway In Hepatitis C Treatment Access Campaign 07/11/2016 by Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Daniele Dionisio writes: It is morally mandatory to ensure that lifesaving direct-acting antivirals for hepatitis C treatment become accessible to all those who need them. This requires commitment and coordination by all interested parties to overcome barriers to access.
Protecting Online Access To Safe And Affordable Medication 27/10/2016 by Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment High drug prices are a global public health crisis. This is mostly the case among lower income countries but also for citizens and residents in the US, where tens of millions are not filling prescriptions due to cost. The international online marketplace is a much-needed lifeline for consumers who cannot afford prescription medication where they live. People deserve the widest possible access to safe and affordable medication, including online access, and the Internet community can help, says Gabriel Levitt.
‘WHO Is Not Just Seeking To Be A Firefighter’ – Peter Salama On Reform And Emergency Response At The UN Health Agency 26/10/2016 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Under its new health emergencies program, the World Health Organization is setting up an improved structure for global health emergencies like the Ebola outbreak. But the UN agency is also opening itself up to a role as partnership broker to ensure the world has what it needs when the emergencies arise. And in doing so, WHO is trying to ensure that it remains the central player in global policy discussions and is not just an emergency response unit.