“Shame On You” – EU Parliament Pressured On Vote Over Surveillance 11/03/2014 by Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment On the eve of European Parliament’s final decision on consequences from revelations of mass surveillance directed against citizens, several members of the Parliament heavily criticised EU governments for the lack of action.
US To Hold Forum On Copyright Notice And Takedown System 10/03/2014 by Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment A United States government agency later this month will hold the first meeting of a multistakeholder forum on improving the operation of the widespread notice and takedown system for removing infringing content from the internet.
New Constitutions Of Egypt, Tunisia Provide For IP Rights Protection For First Time 10/03/2014 by Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Last January, Egypt and Tunisia enacted new constitutions which provide for the protection of intellectual property rights, at the constitutional level, for the first time in the history of both countries. In addition, they include clauses which give priority to building a knowledge economy, Ahmed Abdel-Latif writes.
Patents Not Best To Protect Traditional Medical Knowledge, Author Says 07/03/2014 by Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Traditional medical knowledge would be best protected through liability rules instead of patents, according to a book exploring the applicability of intellectual property rights to traditional medical knowledge protection, and in particular if IP rights are suitable to promote the goals of the UN Convention on Biological Diversity.
Automated Cars – And Regulations – At The Geneva Motor Show 07/03/2014 by Julia Fraser for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Among the Ferraris, Maseratis and Lamborghinis in Geneva this week, high-level representatives of the auto industry, the UN International Telecommunication Union (ITU), the Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA) and the UN Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) discussed issues of safety, data sharing and standardisation.
EPO Sees More Applications, More Modernisation, Battistelli Says 06/03/2014 by Dugie Standeford for Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment Patent quality is top priority for the European Patent Office, which “wants to be the best in the world,” President Benoît Battistelli said in a 5 March interview. The office’s latest annual report shows that patent filings are at an all-time high, and that Europe is an innovation hub. The office’s push for excellence, however, has sparked some staff resistance, Battistelli said.
US Congress Committee Issues Report On “Highly Invasive” FDA Surveillance Of Employees 26/02/2014 by Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment The United States House of Representatives Committee on Oversight and Government Reform today released a report detailing the US Food and Drug Administration’s “highly-invasive” surveillance programme that monitored employees who contacted Congress and the media, according to a press release from the committee leaders. Surveillance was unauthorised and whistleblowers were not given sufficient protection, the report found.
Novel Legal Attack On Patent Trolls Falters In US 25/02/2014 by Steven Seidenberg for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment It began last May, when a tiny state in the United States launched a novel legal attack against a notorious patent troll. Other states and the federal government soon followed, all asserting that the troll’s efforts to licence its patents violated consumer protection laws. At first, this new legal strategy produced some significant victories. Many experts and government officials embraced consumer protection law as an important new tool against patent trolls. But a recent court ruling has cast doubt on the future of this once-promising strategy.
EU Trademark Reform Delayed; Debate Includes Goods-In-Transit, Harmonisation 25/02/2014 by Dugie Standeford for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Efforts to update European Union trademark law have slowed amid political differences and squabbles over some provisions of the reform package, representatives from the European Commission (EC), European Parliament and trademark community say. Contrary to the wishes of the EC and lawmakers, the legislation will not be completed before European parliamentary elections in May.
Year Ahead: Biotech, IP Promise to Create Controversy From Farms To Big Pharma In 2014 25/02/2014 by Liza Porteus Viana, Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment The intersection of biotechnology and intellectual property continues to be a hot topic across the globe. From the patenting of certain plant varieties to human genes, to biodiversity and food security, to genetic resources, countries from developing to developed are attempting to navigate often blurred lines in terms of what can and cannot be patented, what should – and shouldn’t – be patented, and protecting innovators from farmers to plant breeders to drug manufacturers.