Battistelli Of France Is New EPO President 01/03/2010 by Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment The Administrative Council of the Munich-based European Patent Organisation on 1 March elected Benoît Battistelli of France as next president of the European Patent Office (EPO), starting on 1 July. Battistelli is director general of the French National Institute of Industrial Property. He will succeed Alison Brimelow of the United Kingdom, and will serve a […]
Efficacy Of TRIPS Public Health Amendment In Question At WTO 01/03/2010 by Kaitlin Mara for Intellectual Property Watch 4 Comments World Trade Organization members this week will hear a report on an informal meeting on an amendment to intellectual property trade rules intended to allow easier access to medicines, which some argue has had a flawed design from its inception.
GIs Can Help Development, But Key Ingredients Are Needed, FAO Says 01/03/2010 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Geographical indications (GIs) can be a tool for sustainable development in rural areas and are attracting a rising interest from developing country producers, but some ingredients must be taken into account, such as an effective legal framework and collective management of the GIs, according to a recently released guide produced by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).
OECD Official Joins WIPO Economics Team 26/02/2010 by Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Sacha Wunsch-Vincent, formerly an economist at the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Directorate for Science, Technology, and Industry, has joined the World Intellectual Property Organization as a senior economic officer under its chief economist Carsten Fink. Wunsch-Vincent has a background in intellectual property issues, and at the OECD was in charge of innovation […]
EPO In Another Attempt To Elect President 26/02/2010 by Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment The European Patent Office will hold another extraordinary meeting on Monday to try and elect a replacement for outgoing president Alison Brimelow. The 1 March election will be the fourth attempt for one of the candidates to get the required three quarter majority needed to win the seat. Previous elections were held in February, December, […]
Tough IP Health Provisions In Europe’s Colombia/Peru Trade Deal 25/02/2010 by David Cronin for Intellectual Property Watch 3 Comments Far-reaching provisions on the patenting of medicine have been inserted into a controversial free trade agreement between the European Union and Colombia and Peru.
Tentative Agreement On US Patent Reform, Says Senator 25/02/2010 by Intellectual Property Watch 3 Comments Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (Democrat, Vermont) today announced at an “executive business meeting” that a “tentative agreement” had been reached on patent reform legislation. The original intent of the reform, Leahy said, was to “improve patent quality” and “address runaway damage awards that were harming innovation.” He added, “we are close to a […]
European Commission Gets Tough Treatment From Parliament Over ACTA 25/02/2010 by Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment By Monika Ermert for Intellectual Property Watch In a written declaration presented 24 February, members of the Liberal Party Group (ALDE), the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats (S&D), and the European People’s Party (EPP) requested the European Commission immediately make all documents related to the ongoing negotiations of the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA) publicly […]
ACTA Internet Document Leaked, New EU Transparency Call 23/02/2010 by Intellectual Property Watch 3 Comments A new leaked document from the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA) negotiations confirms earlier statements by officials that the agreement does not include mandatory internet cut-off for accused copyright infringers. Yet versions of the so-called “three strikes and you’re out” model have passed in France, New Zealand, South Korea and Taiwan. And the leaked document, allegedly […]
Technologies Of Dissent: A Primer From Yale A2K4 Conference 22/02/2010 by Kaitlin Mara for Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment Leaps forward in technology can bring with them dramatic social changes; in particular the expansion of digital and social media has both democratised the power to record information and to be heard, but it has also simultaneously made it easier than ever before for public institutions to intrude upon private lives.