Indonesia Strives To Acquire Bird Flu Medicines Despite No Patent 05/07/2006 by Tove Iren S. Gerhardsen for Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment With eight recently confirmed cases of avian influenza, Indonesia is scrambling to build up its stockpile of medicines. The preferred product to fight bird flu in humans is not under patent in Indonesia, which raises questions as to why production has been off to a slow start in the country. Roche, the Swiss producer of […]
Intellectual Property Watch Welcomes Catherine Saez As Office Manager 04/07/2006 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Intellectual Property Watch is happy to announce that Catherine Saez has joined the staff as Office Manager, with critical wide-ranging responsibilities including oversight of office functions, accounting, management of databases, outreach, and editorial contributions. She also will help with French-English translations. Catherine has worked for the last ten years copy-editing and translating publications, managing databases […]
UK Study: NGOs Helpful To Developing Countries But Could Improve 03/07/2006 by Tove Iren S. Gerhardsen for Intellectual Property Watch 5 Comments By Tove Iren S. Gerhardsen Assistance on intellectual property rights from non-governmental organisations (NGOs) is helpful to developing countries but more coordination and a “reality check” are needed, according to Geneva-based government officials. The remarks were made by developing country officials commenting on preliminary findings of a United Kingdom academic study on the impact of […]
Key Personnel Changes Coming At EU, Japan, US Delegations In Geneva 03/07/2006 by Tove Iren S. Gerhardsen for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Key negotiators on intellectual property rights from the European Commission, Japan, and the United States have announced they will be leaving their Geneva posts this summer. The nations represented by these negotiators account for the vast majority of the world’s intellectual property. After three years as intellectual property attaché at the US Mission to the […]
WIPO Development Agenda Talks End With No Agreement For Now 30/06/2006 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment By William New and Tove Iren S. Gerhardsen After two week-long meetings and intensive consultations during the year, talks on bolstering the development perspective of the World Intellectual Property Organization ended today with no agreement, sending proposals back to the UN body’s annual meeting of member states in September. But a continuation of the debate […]
WIPO Development Agenda Negotiation Hits Rocks 29/06/2006 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Negotiations for the infusion of a stronger development mandate into the work of the World Intellectual Property Organization may have hit a wall today after key proponent governments called for an end to talks to protest unfair treatment of their proposals. If over for now, the issue would be passed to the WIPO General Assembly, […]
WIPO Members To Seek Agreement On Development Agenda 24/06/2006 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment As they head into the final scheduled meeting of the year on a proposed development-oriented reform of the World Intellectual Property Organization, member governments are looking for agreement on how to proceed – this week and in the future. Officials interviewed on 23 June revealed that deep divisions remain heading into the 26-30 June meeting […]
WIPO Members Greet New Cabinet As Some Seek Better Regional Presence; Idris End Date Unclear 23/06/2006 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment The World Intellectual Property Organization Coordination Committee this week welcomed new appointees to the highest policy echelons of WIPO, but some governments added calls for broader regional representation in the organisation. In addition, a question remains as to whether WIPO Director General Kamil Idris must step down in 2009. Of the four newly named deputy […]
WHO Intergovernmental Working Group On IP Ready “In Days” 23/06/2006 by Tove Iren S. Gerhardsen for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment An intergovernmental working group on intellectual property rights mandated by the May World Health Assembly is expected to be set up “in the next few days,” according to World Health Organization sources. The WHA resolution adopted in May called for the committee to be created “immediately,” and supporters are getting eager to see the issue […]
EU Flags Geographical Indications In WTO Trade Talks Paper 22/06/2006 by Tove Iren S. Gerhardsen for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment In a new European Union communication to the World Trade Organization (WTO) in the ongoing agriculture negotiations, the EU has moved its call for higher intellectual property rights protection for product names deriving from geographical locations to the top of its list of demands. At issue is Europe’s wish to better protect its geographical indications […]