Medicines Patent Pool Partners with Liverpool University On HIV Nanomedicines 01/12/2015 by Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment The Medicines Patent Pool has signed a collaborative agreement with the University of Liverpool to develop HIV nanomedicines.
WIPO Patent Law Committee Looks At Access To Medicines, Confidentiality 30/11/2015 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment The World Intellectual Property Organization committee on patent law is meeting this week, including a half-day seminar on the relationship between patent systems and the availability of medicines in developing countries and least-developed countries.
TPP Strengthens Controversial IP Arbitration 30/11/2015 by Steven Seidenberg for Intellectual Property Watch 3 Comments The US government has been less than candid about the Trans-Pacific Partnership. While the agreement was being negotiated, the US Trade Representative stated that a much-criticized arbitration process included in the TPP would not apply to intellectual property. Turns out, it does apply to IP. And it provides foreign corporations with a huge advantage in IP disputes – private arbitrations that can override courts and statutes, effectively rewriting a nation’s IP laws.
Medicines Patent Pool: First Licence Agreement For Hepatitis C Drug 23/11/2015 by Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment The Medicines Patent Pool announced today that it signed a first licence for a hepatitis C drug with Bristol-Myers Squibb. The agreement allows manufacturing of daclatasvir, royalty-free in 112 low-and middle-income countries.
Strength In Unity: Mercosur Countries Join To Negotiate Lower Prices For Hepatitis C and HIV Drugs 18/11/2015 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch 2 Comments South American countries are negotiating with pharmaceutical companies to obtain common cheaper prices for high-cost medicines. The first target of initial negotiations delivered lower prices for hepatitis C and HIV. Further negotiations will be geared to additional hepatitis C, HIV and oncology medicines.
Tech Transfer, Better Regulation, Policy Reform Can Spur Growth In East Africa’s Pharma Sector, Experts Say 18/11/2015 by Fredrick Nzwili for Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment NAIROBI, Kenya — Amid concerns over cheap imports, substandard products and counterfeits, pharmaceutical experts in East Africa are set to hold a summit early next year to discuss key challenges facing the industry in the region. Experts at the event announcement in Nairobi today stressed that technology transfer, better regulation and policy reforms can accelerate growth and spur innovation in the sector.
WTO Discussions On Non-Violation Complaints Might Be Near Consensus, Sources Say 17/11/2015 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Last month, the World Trade Organization committee on intellectual property was suspended over two contentious items. One item left open is the proposed extension of a moratorium which leaves intellectual property outside of a mechanism through which one WTO member can go after another despite no violation of a WTO agreement. According to sources, a solution might be within reach.
WHO Member State Mechanism On Fake Medicines Meeting This Week 17/11/2015 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment This week the World Health Organization member state mechanism on falsified medicines is meeting in Geneva with a long agenda. In particular, the meeting is expected to consider a process for the mechanism review, the participation of the WHO in a global committee on the quality of health products, and several proposals including tracking systems and awareness campaigns.
WHO Director Questions IP Rights, Drug Prices, Industry Influence 12/11/2015 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Saying she could speak more freely outside of the World Health Organization, WHO Director General Margaret Chan today told a gathering of think tank representatives at the Graduate Institute of Geneva that intellectual property rights may be unfairly driving up drug prices and that industry lobbying may be interfering with governments’ efforts to take action on behalf of their citizens’ public health.
Panel Looks At Patentability Criteria In Public Health 11/11/2015 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment A recent workshop on patentability criteria illustrated how countries are using the policy space provided by international trade rules to calibrate their patent law. In particular, incremental innovation remains a trying issue for national legislators, speakers said.