IP Still At Heart Of Access To Medicines Discussions At WHO 07/02/2019 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Intellectual property is often pointed at as hindering access to medicines by resulting in their long-lasting unaffordability, a view which is strongly opposed by IP proponents. The discussions on access to medicines last week during the World Health Organization Executive Board meeting yielded a record number of interventions by member states and nongovernmental organisations, reflecting the importance of the issue.
Current R&D Causes High Prices In Drugs; New Model Needed To Make Drugs More Affordable, Speakers Say 01/02/2019 by Sinfah Tunsarawuth for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment BANGKOK – The current research and development model may encourage innovation in medicines, but has caused drugs to become unaffordable and inaccessible for people, particularly those in low- and middle-income countries, panellists and participants at a major conference here said.
Switzerland Receives Request For Compulsory Licence On Breast Cancer Drug 01/02/2019 by Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment Swiss health activist group Public Eye yesterday requested the Swiss government to declare a compulsory licence for a Roche breast cancer treatment which the group says is unaffordable.
Open Access Advocates See End Of US Copyright Term Extension Act As Win For Commons 25/01/2019 by David Branigan, Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment Open access advocates in the United States are celebrating the expiration, and non-renewal, of the Copyright Term Extension Act, which introduces into the public domain all works from 1923, and signals an end of the practice by US lawmakers to continually extend the terms of copyright protection. Leading figures from groups such as Creative Commons and Wikimedia Foundation gathered to discuss why this shift in policy took place, and what it means for the public domain. They asserted that this change is the result of a general acceptance of the value of “the commons,” brought on in part by the era of the internet.
WHO Cancer Report Stirs Debate On Eve Of Board Meeting 23/01/2019 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch 3 Comments As the World Health Organization Executive Board gathers tomorrow for its annual January meeting, health industry and advocacy groups have seized on a WHO report to be presented to the Board that finds high prices for cancer medicines are “impairing” governments’ ability to provide affordable treatments. One issue they may have in common is a desire for more transparency in analyses of prices.
Sudden Vacancies At Some International Agencies, Industry Sees New Top Officials, Lawyers Engage In Firm-Hopping 17/01/2019 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment While the World Bank Group and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) are looking for new leaders following the unexpected resignations of their heads, the International Telecommunication Union re-elected its secretary general. The European Patent Office got two new vice-chairs, and the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) a new president, both starting in January. Associations for the creative industry and the pharmaceutical industry also elected new top officials, and lawyers continued to practice firm-hopping.
Nearly 100 European Authors Demand ‘Proportionate’ Remuneration In EU Copyright Directive 17/01/2019 by Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment With negotiations for the European Union Copyright Directive apparently approaching an end, a group of some 95 screenwriters and directors joined the intensive lobbying efforts with a letter today urging that a principle of “proportionate” remuneration to them be enshrined. The letter spells out several elements they argue are key to ensuring European audiovisual authors are able to “make a living from our craft and creativity.”
EIFL Looks Forward To An Exciting 2019 At WIPO 20/12/2018 by Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Teresa Hackett, EIFL Copyright and Libraries Programme Manager, attended the 37th meeting of the WIPO Standing Committee on Copyright and Related Rights (SCCR), the global body that sets international copyright law and policy, that took place in Geneva from 26 – 30 November 2018. During a full week advocating for libraries, EIFL participated in discussions on copyright limitations and exceptions, gave presentations at two civil society organized events, and engaged with government delegates from EIFL partner countries on library issues. At the last SCCR of 2018, the main focus for libraries was on activities in the WIPO action plan 2018-2019; civil society presented ideas for the upcoming regional seminars on limitations and exceptions, as well as views on how to fix the draft broadcast treaty.
Four Million EU Voters Sign Call Against Upload Filters, Protection Of ‘Snippets’ 13/12/2018 by Monika Ermert for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Ahead of the 5th trilogue meeting on the future copyright regulation between the rapporteurs of the European Parliament, member states and the European Commission on 13 December in Strasbourg, France, copyright activists collected over 4 million signatories to a petition to amend the draft legislation. Meanwhile, a court decision in Germany today puts use of its auxiliary copyright law for press publishers in question.
Report: Core Copyright Industries Add $1.3 Trillion To US Economy 07/12/2018 by Emmanuel Legrand for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Core copyright industries have contributed more than $1.3 trillion to US gross domestic product (GDP) in 2017, and accounted for 6.85% of the US economy. They employed nearly 5.7 million workers in 2017, accounting for 3.85% of the entire US workforce, or 4.54% of total private employment in the United States, according to the International Intellectual Property Alliance (IIPA)’s “Copyright Industries in the U.S. Economy: The 2018 Report.”