WIPO Assemblies Put Industry, Creators, Policymakers In Touch; Enforcement Committee Gets Mandate 01/10/2013 by William New and Alessandro Marongiu for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Policymakers at the World Intellectual Property Organization annual General Assembly over the past week have had significant exposure to what industry and creators are up to. Meanwhile, WIPO members approved the mandate for the WIPO committee on IP enforcement.
Big Pharmaceutical Firms Say MDGs Partnerships Are ‘Best-Kept Secret’ 27/09/2013 by Liza Porteus Viana, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment NEW YORK – The vast collaboration between the pharmaceutical industry, government and civil society is perhaps “one of the best-kept secrets of our industry,” the head of the International Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers & Associations (IFPMA) said this week, stressing the need for even more cooperating heading into the post-2015 development agenda at the United Nations.
WIPO Approves 15 New Observers, Including DNDi, COHRED; Pirate Parties Rejected 25/09/2013 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch 2 Comments Member governments of the UN World Intellectual Property Organization today approved 15 new observers to the organisation, including three international organisations, and a range of nongovernmental organisations such as two significant public health-oriented groups. But two groups were rejected, including the high-profile Pirate Parties International. Separately, the member governments of the important WIPO Program and Budget Committee were also announced today.
Members Of US Congress Urge US To Oppose Re-Election Of WIPO Director Gurry 20/09/2013 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch 7 Comments A handful of influential members of the United States Congress have sent a letter to US Secretary of State John Kerry, urging the Obama administration not to support the re-election of World Intellectual Property Organization Director General Francis Gurry.
Meeting Highlights Use Of Open Data In Science, Health And Sustainable Development 18/09/2013 by Alessandro Marongiu for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment At the end of a two-day conference in Switzerland, open knowledge experts emphasised the role of open data in strengthening science findings’ credibility, fostering medical research and enhancing sustainable development.
Motion Picture Association Study Finds Search Engines Complicit In Piracy 18/09/2013 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment A new study released today by the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) in the company of members of the United States Congress found that internet search engines play a key role in user access to copyright infringing content online. The copyright industry study will be used to make the case that search engine companies, such as Google, need to take more responsibility in deterring use of unauthorised content without compensation to the rightsholders.
Stop Treating Symptoms And Start Curing Diseases: The End Of Graduated Response 18/09/2013 by Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Rene Summer writes: The debate about copyright enforcement – whether rights holders’ unshakable conviction in the effectiveness of graduated responses is rational – has reached a watershed. This is not to say that there aren’t any ongoing, well-funded lobby campaigns around the world aimed at convincing policy makers to revert to the practice of some form of graduated response. Nor am I saying that there aren’t any other important considerations, such as the rights of citizens and intermediaries, to be weighted in when debating copyright enforcement, lessening the case for such practices. Rather, what I am saying is that arguing for graduated responses can no longer be done on efficiency grounds without at the same time being intellectually dishonest.
Experts Chart How To Take Open Knowledge Success To Next Level 18/09/2013 by Alessandro Marongiu for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment The process of opening up data from the public and private sectors has achieved relevant success in recent years, but many challenges are still to be overcome to make data really accessible and usable by the public. These were the main ideas that emerged from a meeting of open knowledge experts in Geneva yesterday.
Paper Looks At Human Rights Side Of IP And Medicines Access 17/09/2013 by Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment A new report released by the Yale Global Health Justice Partnership looks at the use of human rights to improve access to medicines by reducing the barriers that intellectual property laws create to such access.
Review Of US IP Enforcement, Copyright Reform Process Stir Interest 16/09/2013 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment The United States government is undertaking substantive review of, and strategy for, its intellectual property system, with an eye toward a major overhaul of aspects such as copyright. And stakeholders are leaping at the opportunity to comment.