UNCTAD Handbook: IP And The CBD Protocol On Genetic Resources 30/04/2013 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment The Nagoya Protocol, adopted under the Convention on Biological Diversity, provides a set of rules to prevent misappropriation of genetic resources. As such, it crosses paths with the international intellectual property system. This interface is the subject of a handbook to be published by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development.
UNCTAD: IPRs In Health, Research, Cosmetics, Meet Access & Benefit Sharing 29/04/2013 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch 2 Comments The interactions between intellectual property and international rules of global access and benefit sharing were explored recently as an expert group meeting was convened by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) to explore several areas where those interactions occur.
In “Great Shame,” WIPO Fund For Indigenous Peoples’ Participation Running Dry 26/04/2013 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch 3 Comments The participation of indigenous peoples at the United Nations World Intellectual Property Organization has become compromised as the funds allowing the organisation to invite indigenous peoples representatives is running dry. At the outset of this week’s WIPO committee seeking to produce an international instrument providing protection to traditional knowledge, an indigenous panel mapped out international agreements recognising their specific rights.
WIPO Demonstrates 3D Printing: Making The Impossible Possible 25/04/2013 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch 2 Comments Experts in the field of three dimensional (3D) printing, invited by the World Intellectual Property Organization, today tried to demystify this technology, which has been much talked about but still not very well understood. Seen by some as a futuristic technology, 3D printing can achieve amazing results but also has technical limits and is not expected to yet lead to a manufacturing revolution.
WIPO Committee Issues Revised Text On Traditional Knowledge Protection 24/04/2013 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment After an intense day of drafting led by member country experts in small groups in closed rooms, the World Intellectual Property Organization secretariat released a new set of draft articles of what could become an international instrument aimed at protecting traditional knowledge.
Protecting Traditional Knowledge: WIPO Members Back To The Drafting Table 22/04/2013 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment World Intellectual Property Organization delegates are meeting once again this week to try to advance a text that could become an international instrument to protect traditional knowledge. Substantial work needs to be done on the draft text, ands developing countries generally favour a legal binding instrument while developed countries would prefer a softer instrument.
Curbing Vaccine Costs Key To Extending Global Immunisation Reach 22/04/2013 by Rachel Marusak Hermann, Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment As the World Health Organization kicks off a week devoted to the promotion of vaccines, newly published research has identified challenges, such as weak supply systems and information gaps, that need to be addressed to scale-up global vaccine coverage. But some observers say that more attention should be paid to the soaring costs of vaccines, starting with a mechanism to track prices.
Mixed Reactions Among Participants In WIPO Talks On Treaty For The Blind 22/04/2013 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch 4 Comments At the close of this week’s negotiating session for an international treaty on copyright exceptions for blind and visually impaired persons, some governments, including upcoming host Morocco, expressed disappointment in the outcome of a three-day drafting session, as it left so much for the diplomatic conference. But most said they are optimistic that solutions can be found.
WIPO Members Send Draft Treaty For The Blind To Marrakesh 22/04/2013 by William New and Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Members of the World Intellectual Property Organization have completed work on a draft treaty on copyright exceptions for the blind and visually impaired and agreed to move to a diplomatic conference in Morocco in June. But the text contains many areas displaying the difficulty in easing cross-border access to materials for blind people while protecting copyright holders’ interests.
In UN Talks On Treaty For The Blind, Concern About Heavy Focus On Rightholders’ Interests 20/04/2013 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment The treaty currently being discussed at the World Intellectual Property Organization is of prime importance for blind and visually impaired people who are expecting that negotiators will engineer a treaty that is workable in the real world, they say. But too much focus on the right holders concerns might endanger the utility of such a treaty, according to the representative of a blind persons’ organisation.