OECD Book Highlights Economic Impact – Good And Bad – Of IPRs 02/09/2015 by Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment A new book from the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) paints a revealing picture of the impact on economies of intellectual property rights.
OECD Digital Economy Report Measures Innovation With IPRs 31/08/2015 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment An annual report on the digital economy from the economic organisation of the world’s richest countries measures innovation by how many patents, designs and trademarks were filed by businesses.
Five Reasons Why TPP Countries Should Unite To Oppose The US Pharmaceutical IP Agenda 18/08/2015 by Intellectual Property Watch 3 Comments Failure to reach agreement over expanded intellectual property (IP) protections for medicines has proven to be a stumbling block to completion of the 12-country Trans Pacific Partnership negotiations. As expected, the US is continuing to pressure negotiating partners to adopt broader and longer monopoly protections for medicines. But the risks for their health systems are very high – and will be much higher if they don’t stick together in rejecting the US demands.
Ecuador, BRICS Moving Away From International Investment Dispute Regime, Paper Says 18/08/2015 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment As part of a series of publications on investment treaties and investor-state dispute settlement, a developing country multilateral organisation released a policy brief focusing on Ecuador’s experience and action against the current dispute settlement system.
No Deal Overall, But TPP Ministers Agreed Some IPR Issues In Hawaii, US Says 01/08/2015 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch 4 Comments While the ministers of the 12 countries negotiating the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) acknowledged they are still far apart on certain issues such as dairy, there were some areas of agreement in this week’s negotiation in Hawaii, they said. Some of them appear to have been related to intellectual property rights, with particular mention of geographical indications (GIs).
IP-Watch Seeks Part-Time Fundraising/Outreach Expert 31/07/2015 by Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Intellectual Property Watch is seeking a dynamic person to help expand our fundraising and outreach activities. [Position closed]
The TPP’s Reckless Proposals For Damages Will Have Negative Impact On Future Reform Of IPR Regimes 28/07/2015 by Intellectual Property Watch 13 Comments James Love writes: This week negotiators from a dozen countries are meeting to finalize the rules for the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade agreement. When or if concluded, this massive regional trade agreement will set new standards for the grant of property rights in knowledge, and the enforcement of those rights. The TPP chapter on intellectual property covers all intellectual property types included in Part II of the WTO’s TRIPS agreement, plus some others, including not only patents, copyrights and trademarks, but also “undisclosed information”, test data for the registration of drugs, industrial designs, layout-designs of integrated circuits. The rules in the TPP are intended by the United States to become global norms, effectively replacing TRIPS. While there are plenty of issues in the TPP IP Chapter, this note only addresses one set of issues — those relating to the remedies for the infringement of intellectual property rights. The remedies include such topics as injunctions, damages, and the seizure or destruction of infringing goods.
As TPP Ministers Meet, NGOs Make Urgent Push For Public Interest 27/07/2015 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Trade ministers negotiating the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement meet this week in Maui, Hawaii to try to finish the deal. Along with them are numerous public interest groups strenuously lobbying to steer the deal away from single-minded corporate interest.
Decision Time On Biologics Exclusivity: Eight Years Is No Compromise 27/07/2015 by Intellectual Property Watch 14 Comments Burcu Kilic and Courtney Pine write: As the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) negotiations approach their endgame, biologics exclusivity is still considered “one of the most difficult outstanding issues in the negotiation.”[2] Pharmaceutical companies seek longer data and marketing exclusivities to further delay market entry of cost-saving biosimilar drugs. Data exclusivity prevents follow-on pharmaceutical developers from relying on originators’ test data submitted for marketing approval while seeking such approval for its own product. The World Trade Organization’s (WTO) Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) requires some protection against unfair competition for this sort of data, but it does not require countries to adopt rules conveying exclusive rights over it in the same way as it does regarding patents.[3] Currently, the US provides 12 years of exclusivity for new biological products under the Biologics Price Competition and Innovation Act (BPCIA).[4] The provision providing 12 years exclusivity was buried inside the 20,000-page healthcare law, The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. A robust debate over what would be an appropriate exclusivity period, if any, was overshadowed by other controversial aspects of the bill commonly referred to as Obamacare.
Investor-State Cases Could Have Cost Cash-Strapped Argentina $80B, Paper Says 21/07/2015 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment A new developing country policy brief warns against use of the investor-state dispute settlement mechanism, arguing that it has a low capacity to adapt to exceptional circumstances that can afflict developing countries.