WIPO Director Sees Tougher Times For Multilateral IP Treaties 05/10/2015 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Negotiations for new global policies on intellectual property has become more challenging due to a greater competition in innovation, knowledge asymmetries, and the push for bilateral and regional treaties, the head of the World Intellectual Property Organization said today.
R&D, Innovation Highlighted In Industry-Backed Report On Mobile Tech 04/10/2015 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment We are in the midst of a “mobile revolution” that may equal the industrial revolution, and a key contributor is industry research and development and innovation protected by intellectual property, says a new report.
The Trillion-Dollar Technology 01/10/2015 by Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment The smartphone is one of the most ubiquitous inventions in contemporary life. Ask anyone from teenagers to senior citizens – in industrialized countries, as well as emerging markets – about the wireless ways of their life, and they will tell you this. But what is the economic impact of mobile? That is not as obvious, writes Antonio Varas.
WIPO Working On Voluntary International Collective Management Standards 30/09/2015 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment Collective management organisations have often been the subject of criticism both from artists and end users. Some international federations have set up professional rules, but there is no international standard. The World Intellectual Property Organization is working to set up a voluntary international recognition of good practice for those organisations.
US Court Adds Confusion To #Trademarks 29/09/2015 by Steven Seidenberg for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Once, hashtags (like #cute_cat) merely identified topics on Twitter, Facebook, and other social media. No longer. A rapidly growing number of companies are using hashtags (like #HowDoYouKFC) as trademarks. There is one problem, however. A court in the US has recently ruled that hashtags can never receive trademark protection.
IFRRO Comments On European Copyright Society Opinion In Reprobel Case 29/09/2015 by Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment IFRRO, the International Federation of Reproduction Rights Organisations, has issued comments on the recent opinion offered by the European Copyright Society on European Court of Justice Case C-572/13, Hewlett-Packard Belgium v. Reprobel.
IANA Transition: Trapped Between Demands For Detail, Simplicity 29/09/2015 by Monika Ermert for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Later this week (30 September) the original deadline for the so-called IANA transition runs out. But despite stern warnings from US Assistant Commerce Secretary Lawrence Strickling and former Clinton aide Ira Magaziner that further delays could put the planned change of oversight over the management core internet infrastructure assets at risk, tensions could not be laid to rest over the weekend. After a two-day weekend “dialogue” in Los Angeles between the ICANN Board and the group in charge of developing new accountability mechanisms, it became clear that final text cannot be expected before early next year.
Russian Court Orders vKontakte To Stop Infringement, IFPI Says 29/09/2015 by Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment The London-based International Federation for the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) today announced that a Russian court has ordered popular Russian social network vKontakte to use technology to effectively block infringement of two record companies.
Obama To UN: Real Measure Of A Nation’s Strength Is Its People’s Knowledge, Innovation 28/09/2015 by Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment US President Obama told world leaders at the United Nations today that a nation that tries to repress its people is doomed to failure, and that the new measure of the strength of nations is the success of its people, including their knowledge and creativity. Access to information cannot be defeated due to technology and social media, and the desire of people to choose how they are governed, he said.
WIPO Decides Domain Case In Ashley Madison Leak 25/09/2015 by Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Following the scandalous July leak of private information about millions of users of the secret dating website Ashley Madison, a website appeared ostensibly offering people to dialogue about the leak. And Ashley Madison used intellectual property law to defeat the new site, under a decision of the World Intellectual Property Organization domain dispute procedures announced today.