Neuchâtel Event Looks At Swiss Innovation, Competitiveness 20/02/2015 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment NEUCHATEL – Switzerland is among the best students of global innovation. It continues to score at the top of global indexes and reports on innovation and competitiveness. At a seminar last week at the University of Neuchâtel, speakers gave their views on that success.
WIPO Seminar Could Rekindle Discussions On Genetic Resources, TK 20/02/2015 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment After the failure to agree on work to be done by the World Intellectual Property Organization committee on genetic resources and traditional knowledge at the last general assembly, and a barren calendar of meetings on the subject, WIPO is organising a seminar aimed at sharing regional, national and local experiences.
US Congress Reconsiders Anti-Patent Troll Law 19/02/2015 by Steven Seidenberg for Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment It happened again on 5 February. The powerful chair of the House Judiciary Committee, Rep. Bob Goodlatte introduced the Innovation Act for a second time. This bill, aimed at hurting patent trolls by making a plethora of changes in US patent law, easily passed the House of Representatives last term. It subsequently bogged down in a Democrat-controlled Senate. However, now that the GOP controls both wings of Congress, many observers predict the bill will have soon become law. Other experts aren’t so sure, noting that the Innovation Act is drawing some powerful opposition – and not just from patent trolls.
At WTO Next Week: GI Register, Plain Packaging, Women In Innovation 19/02/2015 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment The next meeting of the World Trade Organization intellectual property committee is expected to include discussions on women and innovation, and concerns about legislative efforts in the United Kingdom and Ireland to introduce plan packaging for tobacco products. Prior to the meeting, informal consultations will be held on the negotiating issue of an international register for geographical indications (GIs) for wines and spirits.
The Year In Biotech/Biodiversity: Patentability, Plant Varieties, Treaty Implementation 16/02/2015 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment Intellectual property-related developments expected this year could profoundly impact the fields of biotechnology and biodiversity. In addition, ongoing issues relating to plant variety protection and public health are expected to be at the forefront of discussions this year. The following is a look at many of the top issues to come.
Geneva Climate Change Talks Conclude With Formal Negotiating Text 13/02/2015 by Elena Bourtchouladze for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Following seven days of negotiations, 194 nations convened in Geneva agreed the negotiating text that is the basis for the accord they hope to reach in Paris at the end of 2015, to come into effect in 2020.
The Role Of Social Media In M&A Transactions 13/02/2015 by Caitlin McGivern for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Despite the ever-increasing use of social media by businesses, social media assets are often overlooked in merger and acquisition (M&A) transactions. When addressing a company’s assets in a purchase agreement, social media assets tend to be explicitly addressed only very briefly, or not at all. It is important to address such assets explicitly, as they do not always constitute intellectual property rights covered by IP representations and warranties.
US Congressional Leaders Blast WIPO Lisbon Treaty Negotiations 13/02/2015 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch 2 Comments The top bipartisan members of the United States Senate and House of Representatives responsible for trade, legal and intellectual property issues today sent a strongly worded letter to World Intellectual Property Organization Director General Francis Gurry demanding that all WIPO members be permitted to fully participate in an upcoming treaty negotiation and raising concern about the trade and economic impact of currently proposed text. The treaty negotiation among a small group of WIPO members is expected to raise the level of protection of geographical indications, which are a key dividing point between Europe and the United States.
Stakeholders Give Opposing Views On GIs In EU-US Trade Agreement 12/02/2015 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Geographical indications – product names deriving from geographical origin or certain characteristics – are increasingly on the table when trade negotiations include Europeans, who are trying to recover names long used around the world. In a recent stakeholder event for the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP), both sides of the GI issue made their case.
UK Defence Science And Tech Lab To Offer IP Royalty-Free Licences 11/02/2015 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment The Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl) has announced it will participate in a plan for sharing some of its intellectual property for research royalty-free, making it the first United Kingdom government agency to do so.