Proposal For A New Model Giving Rights To Online Sharing Of Content 09/02/2012 by Intellectual Property Watch 2 Comments A new publication by a well-known open access advocate proposes a business model for sharing content online that would recognise sharing as a right.
USPTO Launches ‘Patents For Humanity’ Prize Project 08/02/2012 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch 3 Comments The United States Patent and Trademark Office today announced a project it said will award prizes to patent owners for using their patented technology for humanitarian purposes worldwide.
In 2012: Are Biotech, Ethics And Biodiversity Friends or Foes? 08/02/2012 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment With food demand and prices rising as the world crosses the threshold of 7 billion people, the need to find new medicines, concerns about the shrinking biodiversity and the effects of climate change may designate biotechnologies as the main response. Opinions differ on the way to address those issues, in particular about intellectual property rights attached to biotechnologies. Legislative questions are being discussed on both sides of the Atlantic around the scope of patentability, and intellectual property rights on plants, seeds, molecules or methods, as well as exemptions that some think should be applied. The year ahead will see some decisions that might impact the biotechnology industry both in the United States and in Europe.
Groups Call On Congress To Step Back From SOPA-Style Legislation 07/02/2012 by Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Some 70 groups from across the social and political spectrum have sent a letter to the US Senate and House of Representatives calling for them to step back from any anti-piracy legislation until more consideration can be given of the effect on the internet.
WHO Group To Consult On Pandemic Flu Framework In Lead-Up To Assembly 07/02/2012 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment A key World Health Organization advisory group has invited stakeholders to consultations this month on the contribution of the private sector and others to global pandemic flu preparedness.
WIPO: ISP-Trademark Meeting Agreed; Industrial Design Treaty, Country Names Still On Table 04/02/2012 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Delegates at the World Intellectual Property Organization this week resumed an adjourned October meeting and agreed to continue exploring the possibility of a treaty on industrial design by commissioning an impact study on the costs and effects of such a treaty. They also found consensus on the modalities of an information meeting on the role and responsibility of internet intermediaries in the context of trademarks, and decided to explore further the question of the protection of country names.
Tell WIPO What You Think! 03/02/2012 by Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment The World Intellectual Property Organization has launched a survey of stakeholder perceptions and expectations of the UN agency.
Will The Old Music Industry Giants Be Exchanged For New Ones? 02/02/2012 by Monika Ermert for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment CANNES, FRANCE–The red carpets were still there at the Midem, the world’s largest music fair, but they have become shorter. The industry shattered over the years by the decline in physical sales and fighting fiercely against digital piracy this year praised the revenue from digital sources which have overtaken physical sales in some countries. But it remains to be seen – can the old giants partner with the new, digital platform giants, and survive?
Another Indian Generics Company Signs With Patent Pool 02/02/2012 by Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment A leading supplier of generic antiretroviral medicines has signed an agreement to manufacture new HIV medicines for sale in developing countries, the Medicines Patent Pool announced today.
Discussion Of Treaty On Industrial Designs, Role Of ISPs Resumed At WIPO 01/02/2012 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment After being adjourned in November in the mists of a fire at the World Intellectual Property Organization, a meeting on trademarks and industrial designs resumed today in icy Geneva.