G20 Reaches Agreement Against Terrorism, Appears To Target Encryption 07/07/2017 by Monika Ermert for Intellectual Property Watch 2 Comments At the G20 meeting in Hamburg today, the German hosts chose a retreat over the fight against terrorism as a warm-up, before turning to the controversial topics of free trade and climate change. Governments were very much in agreement when it comes to one thing: Internet platform providers must do more to fight radicalization and the use of the internet by terrorists.
ITU Launches Cybersecurity Index 2017 06/07/2017 by Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment The UN International Telecommunication Union (ITU) has published the Global Cybersecurity Index 2017 (GCI-2017). The GCI-2017, the second in this index series, measures the commitments of the 193 member states of the ITU to cybersecurity and helps the member states to identify areas for improvement, according to a press release.
IP Law Europe Summit: Future Of Legal Profession In The Digital Age, Unified Patent Court 04/07/2017 by Elise De Geyter for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment MONTREUX — The legal profession is experiencing a “radical change” due to technology, a globally known author told the recent European IP Law Summit in Montreux, Switzerland. Technology has become “affordable” and professions “unaffordable” in a technology-based internet society, he said. Separately, a Belgian appeals court judge laid out details on the Unified Patent Court of Europe.
US High Court OKs Bigoted Trademarks 29/06/2017 by Steven Seidenberg for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment When the US Supreme Court issued its decision in Matal v. Tam, trademark applicants celebrated, hailing it as a victory for free speech and trademark rights. But some trademark owners will become very unhappy about the ramifications of the Court’s 19 June ruling.
Remote Sensing And (Geo-) ICTs, Prime Tools To Achieve SDGs, WSIS Forum Hears 29/06/2017 by Elise De Geyter for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Remote sensing and geo-ICT are prime technological tools to achieve the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030, according to VITO, the Flemish Institute for Technological Research. But technology should not be considered as “deus ex machina,” a speaker added during the recent World Summit on the Information Society Forum (the WSIS Forum 2017).
Launch Of Open Access Book On Geographical Indications In Asia-Pacific 29/06/2017 by Elise De Geyter for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment A new book launched this week in Geneva offers a unique compilation of the challenges and promises of the protection of geographical indications (GIs) with a particular focus on countries in the Asia-Pacific region.
Joint Effort Required To Expand Local Online Content And Broadband Access 28/06/2017 by Elise De Geyter for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment The lack of content on the internet in local languages and the lack of local digital skills, especially among women and girls, remain central challenges for the digital economy, speakers said during a panel discussion at the recent World Summit on the Information Society Forum 2017 (WSIS Forum 2017).
New WIPO Publications To Help Policymakers With Protection Of TK, Folklore 27/06/2017 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment For years, the intellectual property system, created to protect products of the mind including inventions, held little interest for the continually evolving ancestral culture of indigenous peoples. But the rights of indigenous peoples and local communities are now discussed in many fora, including the World Intellectual Property Organization, where the focus is how to use the IP system to protect indigenous knowledge and genetic resources from misappropriation and exploitation. And the UN organisation just issued two publications on possible ways to use the IP system to do just that.
Fierce Controversy Over Draft Hate Crime Legislation, New Surveillance Law In Germany 27/06/2017 by Monika Ermert for Intellectual Property Watch 2 Comments Just before the upcoming elections in September, the German government seems eager to push through legislation to rein in internet hate speech, fake news, and also legalise state hacks and police searches of computers and mobile phones against suspects of all kinds. Even at the United Nations and Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) level the recent initiatives in Germany have resulted in some raised eyebrows. The draft hate speech law has also “made it to the alert list of the Council of Europe Platform to promote the protection of journalism.”
EU IP Enforcement Summit: Figures Grave, Reactions Slow 23/06/2017 by Monika Ermert for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment With figures now available for what intellectual property infringement is worth, the European Union copyright office made a call to action at its 2nd International IP Enforcement Summit in Berlin, which ended today. “Now that we know the facts, it is time to move to action and problem solving,” said Antonio Campinos, head of the EU IP Office (EUIPO).