Linguistic Diversity Essential For Innovation, Development, Roundtable Speakers Say 04/04/2013 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Multilingualism not only expands cultural horizons but also provides a tool for innovation, speakers gathered at an international roundtable yesterday said. However, language uniformity is a tempting road taken by many – often for cost-related reasons – while multilingualism should be promoted as a factor in development, they said.
Novartis Loses Patent Bid: Lessons From India’s 3(d) Experience 01/04/2013 by Patralekha Chatterjee for Intellectual Property Watch 15 Comments New Delhi – On 1 April, in a packed room in India’s Supreme Court, two judges – Justice Aftab Alam and Justice Ranjana Desai – delivered a verdict that has the potential to dramatically change the national and global conversation about patents and patients.
Singapore Reveals 10-Year Plan To Be Global IP Hub 01/04/2013 by Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment The Government of Singapore today has revealed a set of initiatives it plans to implement over the next decade to further develop the country as an intellectual property hub.
GI Experts Speak Of Value But Concede International Accord Hard To Reach 01/04/2013 by Sinfah Tunsarawuth for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Bangkok, Thailand – Experts on geographical indications ended two days of discussions here by acknowledging greatly the benefit of GIs to national economies and cultural heritages, but conceded that it has been tough to reach a multilateral agreement on the protection of this type of intellectual property. [Updated]
East African Community Doubles Efforts To Boost Local Pharmaceutical Production 28/03/2013 by Rachel Marusak Hermann, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Arusha, Tanzania – Pharmaceutical manufacturers in East Africa have joined forces to strengthen their production capacity to meet at least half of the region’s demand for affordable, quality medicines. The East African Community is supporting this ambitious goal through various initiatives, including a regional intellectual property policy to guide partner states on developing national legislation that fosters local pharmaceutical production.
United States Chided As TRIPS Scofflaw At WTO 26/03/2013 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment A clause unfairly protecting a rum company’s US market by denying trademark rights quietly stuck into a US Congress appropriations bill in the deep of night in the late 1990s continues to haunt the halls of the World Trade Organization – but that does not seem to trouble US trade authorities. And this is not the only intellectual property-related case being met with US indifference, an irony for possibly the biggest proponent of IP rights in the world.
Innovation, IPR Cooperation Among Top Priorities For BRICS 26/03/2013 by Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment The trade ministers of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa (BRICS) today concluded a framework for cooperation that includes innovation and intellectual property rights, but separately.
UPOV 1991 Will Adversely Impact Farmers In Tanzania, Civil Society And Farmers Say 25/03/2013 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment Tanzania is on the road to becoming a member of the International Union for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants (UPOV), but Tanzanian civil society and farmers’ organisations have warned about possible detrimental effects on small-holder farmers and have asked government to halt the ratification process until all stakeholders have been consulted.
South Africa: Trampling Tradition – A Call For Support 25/03/2013 by Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment On 5 March, the Shadow Minister of Trade and Industry, Dr Wilmot James, submitted a Private Members’ Bill to the Office of the Speaker entitled the Protection of Traditional Knowledge Bill – a new traditional knowledge bill that would supplant the one recently sent back by the president of South Africa, Cobus Jooste writes.
Global Fund Receives USD 1.65B From US Congress; Names New Board Leadership 25/03/2013 by Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment The United States Congress on 21 March approved US$ 1.65 billion in aid and support for the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, and US$ 4.07 billion for the US President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR). The Global Fund also announced a new Board chair and vice-chair.