WIPO Side Event Addresses Recent Developments Related To The Nagoya Protocol 13/02/2013 by Tiphaine Nunzia Caulier for Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment At the World Intellectual Property Organization meeting on protection of genetic resources last week, the secretariat of the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) organised a side event to introduce the key features and recent developments of the international protocol on access and benefit-sharing of such resources.
Texts Show Details Of EU Parliament Transparency Directive Vote 13/02/2013 by Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment The European Parliament last week overwhelmingly adopted a text on transparency that was said to improve conditions for generic medicines in the region. The voting documents are now available.
Letter Shows US Pressure On Global Fund For Compulsory Licensing, Generics 12/02/2013 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment A 2011 letter from the top Republican on the United States Senate Finance Committee condemned efforts by the Global Fund to train public health officials on the use of flexibilities to the patent system contained in international trade rules. The letter, which also attacked the purchase of generic medicines over brand-name drugs, came just months before the US helped remove the head of the Global Fund, ultimately replacing him with an American official.
Report Proposes Solutions To Address Non-Communicable Diseases 11/02/2013 by Tiphaine Nunzia Caulier for Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment An industry-backed group of experts has issued a report identifying significant obstacles to addressing non-communicable diseases (NCDs) and proposing solutions to reduce premature deaths caused by NCDs.
South Korea Inks Copyright Protection Deal With Vietnam 11/02/2013 by Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment Manila, Philippines – The Republic of Korea, or South Korea, has signed an agreement with Vietnam for stronger collaboration in the area of copyright protection. This reflects South Korea’s continuing and more aggressive campaign to protect its copyrighted works here in southeast Asia.
US Justice Department Reaches Settlement In E-Books Case 08/02/2013 by Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment The United States Department of Justice today announced it has reached a settlement with Holtzbrinck Publishers LLC, which does business as Macmillan, for allegedly conspiring with Apple Inc. to raise e-book prices.
Draft Text On Protection Of Genetic Resources On Its Way To WIPO Assembly 08/02/2013 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch 4 Comments At the end of a weeklong drafting exercise, World Intellectual Property Organization delegates have produced a text on the protection of genetic resources that appears to be headed to the organisation’s annual General Assembly next September. And some members hope that a high-level meeting will be convened in the course of 2014 to agree on an international instrument or instruments protecting genetic resources against misappropriation.
New Textbook On Copyright Law For Librarians 08/02/2013 by Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Copyright for Librarians (CFL), an online open curriculum on copyright law, has launched a new textbook aimed at providing librarians in developing and transition countries with general information concerning copyright law in addition to the aspects of the law that most affect libraries.
WIPO Update: Improved Text On Genetic Resources; Disclosure Still Undecided 08/02/2013 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch 2 Comments The second revision of a text on the protection of genetic resources was provided to the World Intellectual Property Organization country delegates this morning. The document, which has been streamlined by facilitators, contains a number of bracketed text, showing divergences which will require further work, including resolving how to track origin of genetic material in patent applications.
Genetic Origin In Food And Agriculture Difficult To Identify, Say Seed Treaty Officials 08/02/2013 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Global food security lies in the capacity to access and contribute to a wide pool of genetic material, the chair of the United Nations treaty on plant genetic material said on the margin of this week’s World Intellectual Property Organization meeting on the protection of genetic resources. But the origin of this genetic material is often impossible to determine, particularly for crops, the treaty secretary said.