G7 Health Ministers Propose Incentives For New Antibiotics, Commit Help On Ebola 12/10/2015 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment The health ministers of the Group of Seven (G7) most developed countries have issued a declaration on antimicrobial resistance and Ebola. The governments said they would explore innovative economic incentives to promote research and development of new antibiotics, such as a global antibiotic research fund and a market entry reward mechanism.
Public Broadcasters Rally For TTIP To Respect UNESCO Cultural Diversity Treaty 08/10/2015 by Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment The Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership should expressly include an international treaty on cultural diversity, public broadcasters and a coalition have said.
TPP Heads Into Ratification Game 06/10/2015 by Monika Ermert for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Reactions to yesterday’s announcement that the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) is in the books quickly turned to “what’s next?” with European Commissioner Cecilia Malmstroem sending congratulations and expressing expectations that “with TPP done, we will be able to approach our TTIP negotiations with an even greater focus from both sides.” But considerable work remains for TPP to come into effect.
IP Clauses In FTAs Should Not Go Beyond TRIPS, Generics Manufacturers Say 04/10/2015 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Free trade agreements should include incentives for generic and biosimilar medicines, speakers said at a panel during the World Trade Organization Public Forum last week.
WTO Panels Look At Partnerships, Digital Trade 04/10/2015 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Among the many topics at last week’s World Trade Organization Public Forum were panels on o partnerships and on digital trade. This article takes a brief look at two of the panels that touched on intellectual property rights.
Medicrime Convention Against Counterfeit Drugs To Enter Into Force In 2016 01/10/2015 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment The ratification of an international convention to fight counterfeit of medical products by Guinea has unlocked the entry into force of the instrument, now set to happen on 1 January 2016.
IP-Watch/Yale FOIA Case Decided: USTR Can Keep TPP Texts Secret, But Maybe Not Communications With Industry Advisors 30/09/2015 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch 4 Comments As government negotiators dig into perhaps the final round of the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade negotiations this week in Atlanta, they may take comfort in knowing that nothing they are doing has to be shared with the public they represent until years after it is over. That’s because a federal district court in Manhattan decided this week, in a closely watched Freedom of Information Act case brought by Intellectual Property Watch, that draft texts of the trade deal can be kept secret. The court did, however, cast doubt on the government’s reasons for also keeping its communications with industry lobbyists from the public eye.
TTIP Could Lead To Jobs, Access To Better Drugs, Says Pharma 25/09/2015 by Marianna Drake for Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment The trade negotiation between Europe and the United States relating to a wide range of trade and investment policies could lead to greater job creation and access to innovative medicines, according to senior European and American pharmaceutical business leaders and academics.
Top US Lawmakers On Trade Urge Action On India’s Treatment Of IPRs 22/09/2015 by Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment The top members of US Congress and the Senate responsible for international trade issues today urged the Obama administration to push for changes to India’s handling of intellectual property rights and technology. The United States and India are preparing for high-level bilateral meetings. The elected officials’ positions appear to be similar to those of US […]
Resisting The Law Of Greed 09/09/2015 by Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment In 2011 in a small court in Ecuador’s Amazon jungle, a judge ordered the American oil giant Chevron to pay US$9 billion dollars in damages for pollution in the region that was caused by drilling activities in the 1970s and 1980s. The company quickly denounced landmark ruling as illegitimate. More than a year before the final ruling had been issued, Chevron had already taken steps to initiate an investor-state dispute against the Government of Ecuador under the terms of a US-Ecuador bilateral investment treaty (BIT). The company seeks to avoid paying the US$9 billion by convincing an international tribunal that the courts of Ecuador are corrupt and that the government is ultimately responsible for any environmental damage and associated health issues experienced by local residents, writes Kyla Tienhaara in Green Agenda.