Health Waiver, IP Enforcement Discussed At Lively WTO TRIPS Council Meeting 10/06/2010 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch 2 Comments After two days of lively discussion, members of a World Trade Organization committee this week agreed to devote a day in October to an in-depth discussion on a waiver to WTO intellectual property rules aimed at boosting access to medicines for poor countries. In addition, some member countries presented concerns about the possible effect of a global enforcement push by developed countries and the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA) under negotiation outside WTO, while ACTA proponent countries sought to allay fears.
UNITAID-Backed Patent Pool Final; Drug Licence Talks Can Begin 08/06/2010 by William New and Kaitlin Mara for Intellectual Property Watch 9 Comments The final step in the establishment of a patent pool under international drug-purchasing mechanism UNITAID was taken today, the UN body announced.
WHO’s Chan Responds To Allegations Of Misconduct On Flu Pandemic 08/06/2010 by Kaitlin Mara for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment “At no time, not for one second, did commercial interests enter my decision-making,” Director General Margaret Chan of the World Health Organization declaration in a letter today defending the organisation’s increasingly scrutinised response to an outbreak of H1N1, or ‘swine flu.’
New Rwanda IP Policy Taps Information For Development 08/06/2010 by Kaitlin Mara for Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment “Information is the lifeblood of development,” says the government of Rwanda in a recently-adopted intellectual property policy, part of the country’s comprehensive development strategy. The new policy attempts to integrate Rwanda into the international IP system while simultaneously safeguarding the freedom it needs to drive its own innovation system.
Public Gets A Taste Of WIPO, Policy Debate On IP And Environment 07/06/2010 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Dressed in casual weekend attire with white and blue “WIPO Staff” t-shirts, World Intellectual Property Organization personnel on 5 June gave explanations and guidance on intellectual property rights to the public, while a blimp-shaped balloon advertised the event outside the building. The WIPO lobby was turned into an intellectual property fair with stands displaying the range of WIPO’s services, and a much-appreciated wine tasting.
Possible WHO-Industry Conflict Of Interest On Pandemic Flu Under Investigation 07/06/2010 by Kaitlin Mara for Intellectual Property Watch 2 Comments Global health authorities have been guilty of “grave shortcomings” in transparency and accountability to the public good in their handling of the pandemic influenza outbreak says a new draft resolution from the intergovernmental Council of Europe. A related investigative report from the British Medical Journal found evidence of “declarable financial conflicts of interests” among the experts advising the World Health Organization. But WHO denies any wrongdoing.
Council Of Europe Wants In On ICANN Government Body 07/06/2010 by Intellectual Property Watch 3 Comments The 47-member Council of Europe wants to become an observer in the governmental advisory body of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) and is pondering on a possible role as secretariat provider for the ICANN’s Governmental Advisory Committee (GAC). ICANN is the technical oversight body for the internet domain name system. Following […]
Google May Face New Scrutiny For Privacy Violations In Switzerland 04/06/2010 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Legally speaking, there is “little doubt” that Google’s collection of WiFi data by its roving Street View vehicles violates the Swiss Data Protection Act, and the company is likely to come under new scrutiny in Switzerland possibly even resulting in “severe financial consequences,” a respected Swiss law firm has said.
China, India To Raise Concerns At WTO About “TRIPS-Plus” Measures, ACTA 03/06/2010 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch 3 Comments China and India, two increasingly potent players on the global economic stage, next week plan to voice concerns at the World Trade Organization about efforts by developed countries to push poorer trading partners beyond their WTO commitments on trade and intellectual property rights, so-called TRIPS-plus measures.
As WTO Reviews China, EU, US Criticise Its Policy On Innovation, IP Rights 03/06/2010 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment In the past two years, China has acted to improve the protection of intellectual property rights with a need for continuing effort, a World Trade Organization report has found, but the country came under criticism this week from key trading partners such as the United States and the European Union for not providing adequate enforcement and for self-serving innovation practices.