Ebola Vaccine Team Welcomes New UK R&D Financing, Expects Governments To Join In 01/12/2015 by Tove Iren S. Gerhardsen for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment COPENHAGEN, Denmark — Having led the successful collaborative testing of an Ebola-vaccine in record time, John-Arne Røttingen of the Norwegian Institute of Public Health now wants to expand the idea to a permanent global financing facility for research and development. And he is optimistic.
Medicines Patent Pool Partners with Liverpool University On HIV Nanomedicines 01/12/2015 by Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment The Medicines Patent Pool has signed a collaborative agreement with the University of Liverpool to develop HIV nanomedicines.
Flexibility In The TPP Statutory Damages Provision 01/12/2015 by Intellectual Property Watch 2 Comments Jonathan Band writes: During the negotiation of the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement, many concerns were voiced about how TPP would mandate adoption of US-style statutory damages. Under the US Copyright Act, a court can award damages of up to $30,000 per work infringed, which can be ratcheted up to $150,000 per work infringed in cases of willful infringement. Scholars have found that statutory damages in the US have discouraged investment in innovative technologies while incentivizing the emergence of copyright trolls. So how bad is the statutory damages provision in the final TPP agreement?
WIPO Patent Law Committee Looks At Access To Medicines, Confidentiality 30/11/2015 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment The World Intellectual Property Organization committee on patent law is meeting this week, including a half-day seminar on the relationship between patent systems and the availability of medicines in developing countries and least-developed countries.
TPP Strengthens Controversial IP Arbitration 30/11/2015 by Steven Seidenberg for Intellectual Property Watch 3 Comments The US government has been less than candid about the Trans-Pacific Partnership. While the agreement was being negotiated, the US Trade Representative stated that a much-criticized arbitration process included in the TPP would not apply to intellectual property. Turns out, it does apply to IP. And it provides foreign corporations with a huge advantage in IP disputes – private arbitrations that can override courts and statutes, effectively rewriting a nation’s IP laws.
Group Calls On WTO Members To Make Trade Rules Development Compatible 30/11/2015 by Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment A group of civil society organisations is calling for endorsements of a letter to the World Trade Organization prior to the upcoming Ministerial meeting in December aimed at preventing alleged efforts by rich countries to tighten international trade rules and introduce corporate “wish-list” issues from free trade agreements into the WTO.
New Text For Proposed WIPO Broadcasting Treaty Now Available 27/11/2015 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment The chair of the World Intellectual Property Organization copyright committee has issued a new consolidated text on definitions, what should be protected, and the rights to be granted to broadcasters. The text comes in the lead-up to the next meeting of the committee.
Compromise Future Work Plan Adopted For WIPO Committee On Enforcement 27/11/2015 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment The World Intellectual Property Organization committee on enforcement concluded yesterday with an agreement on the future work of the committee. The adoption of this programme was heavily discussed during the week, reflecting the different approaches on enforcement of intellectual property rights among countries.
Russia Reform Of National IP Industry: Royalty Scheme And A New Mega-Regulator 26/11/2015 by Eugene Gerden for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Authors will receive more for their inventions in Russia, as the local government has changed a scheme on the distribution of authors’ royalties. In addition, the government is setting up a new body to draw together the two dozen agencies that deal with aspects of the intellectual property system.
At WIPO, Former South Africa Judge Calls For Balance In IP Rights Enforcement 24/11/2015 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Alongside this week’s meeting of the World Intellectual Property Organization committee on enforcement, an event featured a former South African Supreme Court judge presenting his views on IP enforcement. There is a need to go for the “big fish,” he said, and to bring balance in sanctions and enforcement procedures. He also described courts as finding that exceptions to copyright are a public right.