WTO IP Negotiations Lengthen As New Questions Put On Table 05/12/2008 by Kaitlin Mara for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment By Kaitlin Mara The body at the World Trade Organization tasked with negotiating a multilateral register for geographically-named wines and spirits began what could be several days of meetings Thursday with a question and answer session meant to find common understanding, but instead revealed just how deep the divide remains between the two sides. Sixty-one […]
UN Internet Governance Forum 2008: Friends And Foes, But More Friends 05/12/2008 by Monika Ermert for Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment By Monika Ermert for Intellectual Property Watch HYDERABAD, INDIA – The Internet Governance Forum of the United Nations is halfway through its first term and starting to think about its future after 2010. Gathering in Hyderabad, India this week, it brings together friends and foes of what has been cast as a multi-stakeholder experiment, a […]
Brazilian Draft Law Would Curb Expanded Patents On Pharmaceuticals 02/12/2008 by Claudia Jurberg for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment [Update from the author: Brazil announced on 19 December adoption of the resolution against the extension of patent rights to second-use drugs and polymorphs. Such patents were seen as subterfuges from the pharmaceutical companies to expand their patent rights. The inter-ministry intellectual property group met on 1 December, but only announced the result on 19 […]
Discussions Continue In Informal WTO Special Session On GI Register 02/12/2008 by Kaitlin Mara for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment By Kaitlin Mara The World Trade Organization body mandated to discuss a registry for geographical indications met Monday, with the only resulting agreement being to meet again later this week for further, more technical, discussions. Several ambassadors were present at the meeting, according to sources, indicating that in the lead-up to a possible ministerial this […]
IP And Genetically Modified Organisms: A Fateful Combination, Activists Say 02/12/2008 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment By Catherine Saez With the expanding scope of patents on genetically modified organisms (GMOs) and the implementation of such crops in most countries, farmers’ rights and biodiversity are at risk, and food security has become dependent on a few transnational biotechnological companies, according to speakers at a recent workshop in Geneva. The workshop was hosted […]
Peer To Patent System May Become Model For Patent Offices 01/12/2008 by Liza Porteus Viana, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment By Liza Porteus Viana for Intellectual Property Watch A pilot patent peer review system in the United States could serve as a model for patent offices around the globe. New York Law School, in cooperation with the US Patent and Trademark Office, is in its second year of Peer To Patent, an innovative initiative that opens the patent examination process to public participation. The online system allows the public to supply prior art to assess the claims of pending patent applications. The goal is to provide patent examiners with as much information as possible, and ultimately increase the quality of approved patents.
Proyecto de biblioteca de Google suscita inquietudes respecto a su impacto sobre el acceso a los conocimientos 01/12/2008 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment Por William New El acuerdo que ha sido proclamado como un gran avance en la digitalización del conocimiento humano también está abriendo ciertos interrogantes sobre el acceso a esta información para la mayoría de las personas, según comentó un experto en cuestiones de derechos de autor e interés público. Fred von Lohmann, abogado de la […]
WTO IP Discussion In Question With Possible Ministerial On Horizon 28/11/2008 by Kaitlin Mara for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment By Kaitlin Mara Delegates are buckling down on key negotiating issues in the final days they have to decide whether or not there can be a high-level meeting of government ministers in December, and intellectual property-related issues appear still to be at an impasse with another IP meeting scheduled for Monday. While negotiations on agriculture […]
IP Roadmap Aims At Facilitating Technology Transfer In The Arab World 28/11/2008 by Wagdy Sawahel for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment By Wagdy Sawahel for Intellectual Property Watch An intellectual property “roadmap” for the Arab world has been proposed for facilitating technology transfer as well as the adaptation of acquired technologies to local needs and contributing to the evolution of new technologies and their transfer to the marketplace. This IP roadmap was announced at the two-day […]
Librarians Take The Copyright Battleground In Developing Countries 26/11/2008 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch 3 Comments By William New CHISINAU, MOLDOVA – Creativity may not be the first thing that comes to mind when travelling through the kilometres of mostly grey, Soviet-era cement-block buildings outlying the capital of Moldova, often referred to as Europe’s poorest state. But at its centre, this small, transition economy is going through an exercise being repeated […]