Flurry Of Copyright, Interoperability Policy Activity At European Union 17/07/2008 by Dugie Standeford for Intellectual Property Watch 4 Comments By Dugie Standeford for Intellectual Property Watch In a flurry of intellectual property-related activity, the European Commission this week ordered copyright collecting societies to loosen their stranglehold on cross-border music licensing, proposed extending the term of copyright protection to 95 years, and launched debate on copyright exceptions on the internet. The Commission also adopted a […]
Panel: IP Rights In Standards Impede Competition, Disadvantage Developing Countries 17/07/2008 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment By Catherine Saez Standards and intellectual property rights appear to be worlds apart and to respond to opposite purposes, according to a recent panel of legal and policy experts. While standards are established to ensure compatibility in technology to the advantage of all users at national, regional or international levels, intellectual property rights are meant […]
Europe May Put ACTA Back On Faster Track 16/07/2008 by Monika Ermert for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment By Monika Ermert for Intellectual Property Watch Despite earlier statements by European negotiators that the planned Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA) would need time for fine-tuning, nations seem to accept a fast track movement now. ACTA has been mentioned as an agenda item of the French presidency of the European Union (from July to January), the […]
New Southern/East African Copyright Network Targets Protection, Local Innovation 15/07/2008 by Wagdy Sawahel for Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment By Wagdy Sawahel for Intellectual Property Watch Seventeen African ministers of arts and culture have officially launched the newly formed Southern and Eastern Africa Copyright Network (Seaconet) in a bid to strengthen regional collaboration and cooperation in the field of creative industries, copyright and related rights. “The need to create Seaconet is due to the […]
G8 Governments Want ACTA Finalised This Year, SPLT Talks Accelerated 09/07/2008 by Monika Ermert for Intellectual Property Watch 2 Comments By Monika Ermert for Intellectual Property Watch Despite issues like the current food, energy and climate crises having taken centre stage at this week’s Group of 8 summit in Japan, governments did not lose sight of earlier plans to promote and more strictly protect intellectual property rights. The eight leaders in their document on the […]
El régimen de propiedad intelectual frena la ciencia y la innovación, según afirman laureados del Premio Nobel 08/07/2008 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch 2 Comments Por Dugie Standeford para Intellectual Property Watch MANCHESTER, REINO UNIDO- El marco básico del régimen de propiedad intelectual (PI) pretende “obstaculizar el acceso al conocimiento” en lugar de permitir su difusión, según afirmó el Profesor Joseph Stiglitz durante una conferencia que tuvo lugar el 5 de julio sobre “¿Quién posee la ciencia?”. Stiglitz, Premio Nobel […]
YouTube, eBay Decisions Raise Questions For US Copyright Law 07/07/2008 by Drew Clark for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment By Drew Clark for Intellectual Property Watch WASHINGTON, DC – Two recent court decisions against key United States internet companies – Google and eBay – are almost certain to reopen a long-standing truce between intellectual property rights-holders and website operators, over liability for the actions of users.
US, Indian HIV/AIDS Drug Rulings Could Reverberate In Brazil 04/07/2008 by Tatum Anderson for Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment By Tatum Anderson for Intellectual Property Watch Indian generic manufacturers may be allowed to export a cheaper HIV/AIDS treatment to middle-income countries if US pharmaceutical company Gilead fails to win a patent for the drug in India. And a turnaround by the United States on the same patent may influence the outcome. Currently, the largest […]
A New Business Model For The Music Industry Explained 01/07/2008 by Intellectual Property Watch 9 Comments By Bennett Lincoff The music industry has been in a decade-long death-spiral. This predicament results primarily from insistence by those who benefited most from how the industry operated before the internet arose that the established relationships upon which their past successes were based be preserved as the digital music marketplace develops. The major record labels […]
Member Nations Balk At World Customs Organization IP Enforcement Push 27/06/2008 by Kaitlin Mara for Intellectual Property Watch 3 Comments [Note: the summary text of the Policy Commission session is now available here] By Kaitlin Mara Concerns ran high in some developing countries last week that their voices have been largely absent from a draft set of standards for heightened intellectual property enforcement advancing rapidly at the World Customs Organization. With the draft standards sent […]