EU General Court Clears Copyright Collecting Societies Of Antitrust Charges 12/04/2013 by Dugie Standeford for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment European copyright collecting societies are not engaged in a cartel but the European Commission was correct in finding that some of the provisions in their reciprocal representation should be barred, the EU General Court (GC) said in a 12 April ruling. The case, which pits the International Confederation of Societies and Authors (CISAC) and 24 of its members against the EC, could be appealed to the EU Court of Justice (ECJ). CISAC said the decision proves its contention that it was not engaged in a conspiracy to restrict competition, and that it has already done away with the complained-of clauses. Separately, the ECJ has been asked to tackle several key issues in a German matter involving standards-essential patents encumbered with a fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory (FRAND) licensing agreement.
Six EU Countries Take Legal Action Against Google Over Privacy 04/04/2013 by Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment The Commission nationale de l’informatique et des libertés (CNIL), the French privacy body, said this week in a statement that it will take legal action against Google after the search engine failed to implement changes to its privacy policies. They were joined by data protection agencies from five other European countries.
US Trade Office Calls For Comments On Transatlantic Trade Deal 04/04/2013 by Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Another step toward launching negotiations on a European Union-United States trade agreement has been made as the Office of the US Trade Representative filed a request for comments on the deal and announced a forthcoming public hearing.
Novartis Loses Patent Bid: Lessons From India’s 3(d) Experience 01/04/2013 by Patralekha Chatterjee for Intellectual Property Watch 15 Comments New Delhi – On 1 April, in a packed room in India’s Supreme Court, two judges – Justice Aftab Alam and Justice Ranjana Desai – delivered a verdict that has the potential to dramatically change the national and global conversation about patents and patients.
European Commission Eyes Modernisation Of EU Trademark System 28/03/2013 by Dugie Standeford for Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment European Commission plans to update Europe’s trademark system are generally good news for mark owners, a member of European brand owners’ association MARQUES has said.
Report Analyses Fast-Track Green Patent Applications 28/03/2013 by Tiphaine Nunzia Caulier for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment A new report finds that an overview is needed of the fast-tracking patent system on “green” technologies in the countries where this mechanism is in place – in seven industrialised and two developing countries.
Biovision: Personalised Medicine, Climate Change, Sustainability Need Innovation 27/03/2013 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Lyon, France – Biovision, a biennial international event on life sciences, brought together some 3,000 participants this week to discuss and compare experiences in different fields, including personalised medicine, how best to use natural resources and the impact of climate change on food security. Open innovation was presented as a way forward, and the role of companies in mitigation was deemed important but with ethics.
Rules Changing For Life Sciences Tech Transfer, IP, Speakers Say 26/03/2013 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Lyon, France – Participants at a the Biovision international life sciences forum aimed at encouraging collaboration and integrating innovation shared experiences and discussed a number of topics including intellectual property strategy, technology transfer and the way forward for sustainable innovation.
Comparison Of US, EU Treaties Highlights Differences On ISP Liability 25/03/2013 by Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Following the announcement that the United States and European Union will negotiate a free trade agreement, a comparison of recent US and EU treaties shows differences in their treatment of intellectual property.
German Parliament Votes To Protect News Snippets From Republishing 22/03/2013 by Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment Munich – A controversial update to German copyright law providing for an auxiliary protection for tiny extracts from press articles has been finally passed by the German Upper House (“Bundesrat”).