WTO Ministerial TRIPS Chair Floats ‘Elements’ As Main Issues Start To Move 25/07/2008 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment [Update: Ministers reached a tentative deal Friday night on some aspects of agriculture and NAMA, and will take up services on Saturday, according to ministers.] By William New Word went out Friday evening that there may have been some progress on the main issues under negotiation at this week’s World Trade Organization ministerial in Geneva. […]
Chair: Compromise On TRIPS Issues Still Possible, If Broader WTO Talks Can Move 24/07/2008 by Kaitlin Mara for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment By Kaitlin Mara and William New Compromise on intellectual property issues at this week’s World Trade Organization ministerial meeting has been hard to find, but the facilitator of the IP talks said Thursday night that the possibility remains if the broader talks can proceed. Countries with a range of views met bilaterally with the chair […]
WTO Ministerial: TRIPS Issues May Be Tackled In Smaller Groups Seeking Compromises 23/07/2008 by Kaitlin Mara for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment By Kaitlin Mara and William New A meeting tentatively scheduled for late Wednesday evening to mediate differences of opinion on three intellectual property issues was postponed, at least until Thursday, when consultations may move into smaller groups, sources say. There have been several days of meetings and informal consultations in this week’s World Trade Organization […]
Norway Chairs As Europe Replies GIs A WTO ‘Must’; Others Gear Up Biodiversity Push 23/07/2008 by Kaitlin Mara for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment By Kaitlin Mara with William New Key stakeholder nations on intellectual property issues at this week’s World Trade Organization ministerial in Geneva are holding consultations with the Norwegian foreign minister facilitating to iron out positions before meeting later tonight with WTO Director General Pascal Lamy, according to government sources. [Note: The meeting, which would have […]
IP Rights Holders Frown On Proposed Changes To WTO TRIPS Agreement 23/07/2008 by Kaitlin Mara for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment By Kaitlin Mara Some intellectual property rights holders and their representative governments are looking with concern at the drive to hold discussions on draft modalities for IP issues in this week’s World Trade Organization mini-ministerial. Letters sent early this week to the United States Trade Representative and European Union External Trade Commissioner by developed-nation industry […]
Schwab: US Will Not Negotiate On Extension Of Geographical Indications At WTO 22/07/2008 by Kaitlin Mara for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment By Kaitlin Mara United States Trade Representative Susan Schwab on Tuesday told reporters at the World Trade Organization that the United States does not plan to negotiate this week on the extension of high-level protections on product names associated with locations to products other than wines and spirits. “We are not currently engaged on that […]
Talks But No Breakthroughs Yet On IP Issues For Ministers At WTO 21/07/2008 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment By William New and Kaitlin Mara Intellectual property issues have been a topic of debate at the World Trade Organization ministerial negotiations since Friday and while there have been no changes in positions there has been some talk of looking for compromises, according to sources attending the event. Ministers from some IP-proponent countries raised the […]
New WTO Draft Modalities Text On IP Issues Gathers Wider Support 18/07/2008 by Kaitlin Mara for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment [Note: IP issues may be the subject of meetings between ministers and WTO DG Lamy over this weekend, according to sources.] By Kaitlin Mara and William New A new draft of proposed modalities for negotiating three intellectual property issues at next week’s World Trade Organization ministerial shows that proponents have gathered the support of the […]
Modalities Drafted For WTO Geographical Indications, Biodiversity Amendment 15/07/2008 by Kaitlin Mara for Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment By Kaitlin Mara A confidential draft text circulated recently among some World Trade Organization members reveals an attempt to consolidate separate proposals aimed at the protection of product names with location-related associations and characteristics (called geographical indications) and at the protection of biological diversity and traditional knowledge. Proponents appear to still be seeking support in […]
Intellectual Property: A Means To An Access And Benefit-Sharing End? 14/07/2008 by Kaitlin Mara for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment By Kaitlin Mara Intellectual property is a useful leveraging tool for developing countries eager to see the creation of a global access and benefit-sharing regime on genetic resource use, said a recent panel on biodiversity protections in international law. “Benefit-sharing was viewed as an integral part of the main bargain between developed and developing countries” when the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) was first formed, said Timothy Hodges, a Canadian official who co-chairs an access and benefit-sharing working group under the CBD.