Trademark Filings Reach Record High; Industrial Designs Climb As Well 12/03/2012 by Maricel Estavillo for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment International trademark applications filed in 2011 reached a record high of 42,270 applications and a year-on-year growth of 6.5 per cent as businesses resolved to protect their brands despite last year’s shaky economic situation, the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) reported today.
UN Human Rights Council Rallies On Right To Internet Freedom Of Expression 29/02/2012 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch 4 Comments With tension seeming to brim just beneath the surface, human rights officials from around the world came together today at the United Nations in Geneva to talk about ways to keep the internet open and nationally regulated at the same time. There were no decisions, and wide differences in views, but the first-of-its-kind panel might have laid the ground for future work on internet freedom and human rights. Intellectual property rights were mentioned several times.
WHO, Gates, Industry And NGO Leaders Elevate Attention To Neglected Diseases 30/01/2012 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment A range of some of the world’s top public and private partners in public health today announced an “unprecedented” level of cooperation to fight diseases primarily afflicting poorest populations worldwide for which there is insufficient research and development and inadequate health systems. But how the initiative will tie in with governments’ efforts at the World Health Organization to craft a global framework to address these issues remains to be seen.
US Supreme Court Rules On Golan v. Holder, Key Public Domain Case 18/01/2012 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment The United States Supreme Court today ruled on one of the top intellectual property legal cases expected this year. The case questioned whether the US Congress acted constitutionally when it restored copyright to millions of foreign works that had been in the public domain in the US. And it affirmed Congress’ actions, allowing the US to avoid questions of compliance with its international obligations.
WHO Board Considers Reform, Director Re-Election, Key IP-Related Issues 16/01/2012 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment The UN World Health Organization Executive Board opened its annual January meeting today with a substantive agenda of reform, election, and a variety of issues that touch on intellectual property rights, research and development and innovation. And with the organization in reform and funding straits in a rapidly changing world, the director general stressed the agency’s steadfast approach and role in addressing the increasing global inequality between rich and poor.
EU Patent Advances: Parliament Could Vote In February, Court Location Still Up In Air 22/12/2011 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment The European Parliament Legal Affairs Committee approval this week of a single patent for participating European Union members sets the stage for a February plenary vote in Parliament. But members’ inability to agree on where to locate the new unified patent litigation court means the Polish presidency won’t get to see finalisation of the process that will now head into 2012 under the guidance of Denmark.
As Multilateralism Comes Into Question, WTO Trade Ministers Extend Deadlines 19/12/2011 by Rachel Marusak Hermann, Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment With the negotiations of the Doha Development Agenda formally recognised to be at a standstill, not much was expected from the World Trade Organization’s Eighth Ministerial Conference. There were no surprises at the meeting close as conference Chairman Olusegun Olutoyin Aganga gavelled through the seven matters that were set before the trade ministers.
GIs A Candidate For The Exclusive Club Of Appellations Of Origin At WIPO 19/12/2011 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment World Intellectual Property Organization members last week debated a possible new instrument to protect products with specific origins and characteristics.
Patent Reform Has USPTO’s Trial And Appeal Board At The ‘Centre Of A Storm’ 08/12/2011 by Liza Porteus Viana, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment WASHINGTON, DC – Officials and workers at the US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) are working day and night, as well as weekends, to meet forthcoming deadlines outlined in the America Invents Act (AIA). And some legal experts warn that they are now experiencing the calm before the storm as those deadlines approach.
A Call At OHCHR For Policy Action On Right To Enjoy Benefits Of Scientific Progress 08/12/2011 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch 4 Comments The right of people to enjoy the benefits of scientific progress, the subject of an article in the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, has received little attention and needs new attention in UN agencies, according to panellists yesterday at the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR). Human rights need to enter the arena in fora where scientific progress and its application are being discussed, they said in a public consultation on the ideas.