Official: In WTO Talks, US Pushes Russia To Restrictive TRIPS Standard 24/10/2005 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Russia is negotiating for accession to the World Trade Organization at the same time it is talking with the United States bilaterally about exceeding the terms of the WTO agreement on intellectual property rights, and a senior Russian official said last week that the two have become intertwined. According to Russia’s lead negotiator on WTO […]
Roche Seeks Deals On Bird Flu Drug As Compulsory Licenses Loom 20/10/2005 by Tove Iren S. Gerhardsen for Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment Roche, the Swiss-based company with rights to a medicine believed to be the most effective in the event of an avian influenza pandemic, has expressed openness to discussing arrangements with companies or governments to produce more of its flu treatment known as Tamiflu. But sceptics argue that the offer, made on 18 October, is too […]
Business Leaders Cite IP Protection In Urging Progress In WTO Negotiations 17/10/2005 by Tove Iren S. Gerhardsen for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment An ad hoc, high-level global business leaders’ group that was in Geneva last week to push World Trade Organization negotiators to move forward on free-trade talks highlighted the importance of intellectual property rights protection. But the group stopped short of calling for sanctions against countries they consider to be in violation of those rights. At […]
Trade-Off With WTO Geographical Indications Register Still In Question 23/09/2005 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment A meeting on 16 September of the World Trade Organization committee responsible for intellectual property rights saw little progress on the issue of a creating a register for geographical indications for wines and spirits, according to sources in Geneva. But it did see a new paper from the secretariat that compares the three leading proposals […]
Failure Of Patent Harmonisation Not Critical For WIPO, Official Says 07/09/2005 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Failure to get agreement on a proposal to harmonise national patent laws by World Intellectual Property Organisation members will not impact the functioning and credibility of the organisation, a top WIPO official said today. Failure to agree “is not necessarily the end of the world for WIPO,” Francis Gurry, WIPO deputy director general, said in […]
Push For IP Deals Continues In Lead-Up To WTO Ministerial 09/08/2005 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Issues under negotiation at the World Trade Organization committee responsible for intellectual property issues are somewhat stalled, despite – or because of – their ties to broader issues being negotiated at the WTO, sources in Geneva say. It remains to be seen which, if any, intellectual property-related issues end up being negotiated at the December […]
Pressure Rises On Drug Patents In Brazil 15/05/2005 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Brazil, a developing country leader on international intellectual property issues, has come under pressure at home and abroad over whether to lift domestic patents on foreign pharmaceuticals for AIDS to allow cheaper generic versions to be produced. This week, nearly 200 non-governmental organisations from around the world signed onto a letter urging the Brazilian government […]
Ten Years Later, U.S. Report On IPR Compliance Still Questioned 12/05/2005 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Ten years after the signing of a multilateral agreement pitched as a vehicle to help developing countries defend against unilateral actions against them by larger countries, the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative’s (USTR) annual report on trading partners’ protection of U.S. intellectual property rights is still questioned for its fairness or even legality, according […]
Key US Official On TRIPS And Public Health To Step Down 11/05/2005 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment Ambassador Linnet Deily, the United States representative to the World Trade Organization, has informed staff that she will be leaving office on June 15, according to a US trade official. Deily, who said she will be returning to the United States to spend more time with family, played a key role in the current round […]
TRIPS Public Health Amendment Deadline Missed 31/03/2005 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Governments negotiating to amend the World Trade Organisation intellectual property agreement to allow countries to export generic pharmaceuticals to other countries in need failed to reach agreement by a 31 March deadline, according to sources in Geneva. The deadline was set last year to replace a 30 August 2003 waiver for countries to manufacture products […]