WIPO Development Agenda Meeting Gets Head-Start 16/02/2007 by Tove Iren S. Gerhardsen for Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment By Tove Iren S. Gerhardsen A United Nations meeting next week on proposals to improve developing countries’ benefit from intellectual property rights got a head start when participants from nearly two dozen countries met informally in India and agreed on some priorities, according to government sources. Meanwhile, member governments are preparing to discuss papers drafted […]
Abrupt Departure Of South Centre IP Expert Raises Questions 16/02/2007 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment By William New A key member of the international intellectual property community has been asked to leave his position without warning, prompting questions about the terms of his departure, according to sources. Sisule Musungu, a recognised IP expert who has bolstered the IP programme at the intergovernmental South Centre, was asked to leave on 15 […]
Opposition Gains Support Against Novartis Patent Lawsuit In India 15/02/2007 by Tove Iren S. Gerhardsen for Intellectual Property Watch 3 Comments By Tove Iren S. Gerhardsen As a case challenging India’s patent law proceeds this week, pressure is building from politicians, religious leaders and civil society on Swiss pharmaceutical company Novartis to withdraw the case in the name of public health, sources said. In January 2006, Novartis was denied a patent in India for a special […]
February Edition of IP-Watch Monthly Reporter Now Available 15/02/2007 by Tove Iren S. Gerhardsen for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment The Intellectual Property Watch Monthly Reporter features the most important news on international IP policymaking, the latest on who is coming and going in the IP community at the United Nations, World Trade Organization, Geneva missions, regional and national IP offices, industry and non-governmental organisations, plus News Briefs on reports and events that do not […]
Internet Governance Forum: Is It More Than Talk? 15/02/2007 by Monika Ermert for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment By Monika Ermert for Intellectual Property Watch Multi-stakeholder “dynamic coalitions” of the UN Internet Governance Forum (IGF) are pushing to have privacy, intellectual property, open standards and freedom of expression on the agenda of the second meeting in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil next autumn. At a 13 February IGF stocktaking meeting in Geneva, several of […]
The Development Agenda Of Free Software 15/02/2007 by Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment By Rishab Aiyer Ghosh and Karsten Gerloff, UNU-MERIT The Development Agenda put forward by many World Intellectual Property Organization member states seeks in part to fulfil WIPO’s mission to “promote the use and protection of works of the human spirit.” A major study published by the European Commission1 on 11 January, 2007 highlights how “works […]
TRIPS Meeting: Boost To IP Issues As Part Of Resumed Trade Talks, US Submits Enforcement Proposal 14/02/2007 by Tove Iren S. Gerhardsen for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment By Tove Iren S. Gerhardsen Members of a 13 February World Trade Organization (WTO) meeting on intellectual property rights, signalled that consultations on IP issues will be stepped up in the coming weeks as part of the overall revival in global trade talks, according to participants. Also at the meeting, the United States presented a […]
European Collecting Societies Under Fire From Cable Operators 09/02/2007 by Dugie Standeford for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment By Dugie Standeford for Intellectual Property Watch AMSTERDAM – The current scheme for clearing broadcast retransmission rights harms cable operators and should be revamped, speakers said at this week’s Cable Europe 07 conference in Amsterdam. An alternative to collective rights management organisations (CRMs) – central licensing or all-rights-included packages – could give the cable industry […]
International Patent Filings At Record High; Rapid Asian Growth 07/02/2007 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment By William New A record number of applications for international patents were filed in 2006, and Asian economies are leading the rapid growth, officials from the World Intellectual Property Organization said on 7 February. “There is still growth in the [patent] system, quite healthy growth indeed,” Gurry told a press briefing at the United Nations. […]
Film’s IP Jewel In Peril, US Motion Picture Association Panelists Say 07/02/2007 by John T. Aquino for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment By John T. Aquino for Intellectual Property Watch WASHINGTON, DC – That the US movie industry’s intellectual property is essential for the economic well-being of the industry and the nation was one of two major themes in the Motion Picture Association of America’s (MPAA) all-day 6 February symposium, “The Business of Show Business” in Washington, […]