IP World Enters New Year With Major Shift Of People In Pharma, Copyright 22/12/2016 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment As a new year dawns, a lot of movement has been observed in the pharmaceutical industry with new key players taking the lead. Meanwhile, new delegates are covering IP issues in Geneva, and coordination of regional groups at the World Intellectual Property Organization makes its usual yearly shift for 2017. The copyright industry also saw major changes, and law offices have been busy hiring new partners.
2016 USTR List Of ‘Notorious’ Markets: Stream Ripping, Taobao And Switzerland 21/12/2016 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment The United States Trade Representative’s office today released its annual “notorious markets” for intellectual property-infringing goods, with a list of 21 online and 12 physical markets worldwide. Many of the online sites are based across Europe, including several in Switzerland, but also in Russia and China as in the past. A big feature is China’s Taobao, and new methods like stream ripping.
All General Obligations To Retain Traffic Data Found Illegal Under EU Law 21/12/2016 by Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment The European Court of Justice in Luxembourg made big news today when it ruled against indiscriminate retention of traffic and localisation data once again.
ECJ Advocate General Says EU Commission Cannot Make Trade Deals Without Member States 21/12/2016 by Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment Not all parts of the European Union-Singapore trade agreement “fall within the EU’s exclusive competence and therefore the agreement cannot be concluded without the participation of all of the Member States.” This is the result of an opinion of the European Court of Justice Advocate General Eleanor Sharpston published today.
High Hopes For Blockchain For Digital Copyright Protection 19/12/2016 by Bruce Gain for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Blockchain platforms could help solve some copyright ownership issues for content sharing. But whether the technology lives up to its promise remains to be seen.
No Deal: German Universities Prepare For Cut-Off From Elsevier Journals 16/12/2016 by Monika Ermert for Intellectual Property Watch 9 Comments After licensing negotiations between German university libraries and Elsevier failed at the beginning of the month, over 60 university libraries in Germany are preparing to be cut off from hundreds of journals of the British-Dutch publisher, after a standoff over pricing and access.
US Finds Existing Copyright Law Suited For Software Embedded In Everyday Products 16/12/2016 by Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment The United States Copyright Office has released a study that finds that existing copyright laws are sufficient to cover issues arising over software embedded in everyday consumer products. But it does call for some flexibility for consumers to tinker with their devices.
Southeast Asian Countries Launch IP Cooperation Plan To Be Assisted By WIPO, EU 16/12/2016 by Sinfah Tunsarawuth for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment BANGKOK – Countries in Southeast Asia have launched a 10-year action plan to strengthen their intellectual property rights cooperation, with the European Union and the World Intellectual Property Organization providing financial and technical assistance in helping the countries to achieve their goals.
Group Finds Discrepancies In Implementation Of Nagoya Protocol Between EU, Providers 15/12/2016 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment A new report by two civil society groups explores what they say are discrepancies between European Union and provider country laws implementing the Nagoya Protocol on genetic resources, which they say could lead to legal uncertainties for users and providers.
Idea Of A Multilateral Investment Court Makes Headway, Proponents Say 15/12/2016 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment The European Union and Canada held an informal meeting in Geneva this week to present a project for a multilateral investment court to handle global investor-state disputes, hoping to draw interest and questions by other country delegates, according to sources. Time will be needed to gain acceptance of the idea, they said, and the next opportunity will be at the January World Economic Forum in Davos.