Patently Geopolitical: The New Frontier of Government And Market Interaction 26/08/2013 by Intellectual Property Watch 5 Comments The USTR’s disapproval of the ITC order excluding Apple products from the US raises difficult issues about the relationship between public decision-making and private solutions — and invites strategic policymaking by other governments.
Interviews: What Protection Of Traditional Knowledge Means To Indigenous Peoples 20/08/2013 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch 7 Comments World Intellectual Property Organization member states in July concluded the biennium work of the committee tasked with finding agreement on international legal tools to prevent misappropriation and misuse of genetic resources, traditional knowledge and folklore. Indigenous peoples and local communities are holders of a substantial part of this knowledge and are demanding that it be protected against misappropriation but also against its use without their consent. Intellectual Property Watch recently conducted two interviews on the issue with different indigenous groups.
Patent Risk: The ‘New Normal’ In Patent Troll Litigation 30/07/2013 by Kelly Burke for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment New York – Financial companies in 2012 faced nearly four times the patent litigation from non-practicing entities (NPEs), often called “patent trolls”, than they did five years ago and 2013 promises to be no different, according to a presentation by RPX Corporation, a patent risk management services provider. Financial institutions’ use of social media and its associated risk was also a topic of discussion.
United States Confounded By Standard-Essential Patents 29/07/2013 by Steven Seidenberg for Intellectual Property Watch 2 Comments The United States is in a muddle over standard-essential patents. The nation’s courts and its executive agencies all agree that these patents play vital roles in the economy, but they disagree about what remedies are available when these patents are infringed. A recent decision by the US International Trade Commission has added to the confusion.
Motorola vs. Microsoft And The Future Of FRAND 29/07/2013 by Intellectual Property Watch 5 Comments Andrew Updegrove discusses the handing down by Justice James Robart of a 207-page opinion in a closely-watched dispute between Motorola and Microsoft, involving several patents that Google later acquired (along with the rights under the lawsuit) when it purchased Motorola Mobility. In that opinion, Robart sought to determine what, under all relevant circumstances, Google could fairly and reasonably charge Microsoft to infringe upon the essential claims in question when (for example) it builds and sells an Xbox.
WHO Members Meet This Week On Poor Quality Medicines 22/07/2013 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment World Health Organization members are meeting this week to advance the new international mechanism against substandard and counterfeit medicines.
Arabic TLD First To Go Live; Who Does What In Multi-Stakeholder Internet Self-Governance 16/07/2013 by Monika Ermert for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment شبكة , the Arabic word for “web” or “network”, the Russian words for “online” and “network” and and the Chinese word for “game” is one of the first new top-level domains ready to go live after the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) signed four contracts during its opening session in Durban, South Africa (14-18 July). Despite what might be seen as emblematic of a “greater” ICANN, discussions in Durban this week continue on discrepancies between local law and ICANN contracts. They also continue on the very functioning of the private multi-stakeholder model for self-regulating the name space itself.
WIPO Members Back In Negotiations On Protection Of Traditional Cultural Expressions 15/07/2013 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch 3 Comments Members of the World Intellectual Property Organization this week are attempting to advance 13-year-old negotiations on the protection of traditional cultural expressions (folklore) to a point where they can enter final high-level treaty negotiations. But some developed countries are putting up resistance to any instrument that would be legally binding, saying that it is “premature,” which could change the outcome of the negotiations.
EU, US Conclude First Round Of Trade Talks 12/07/2013 by Intellectual Property Watch 2 Comments During the first round of negotiations for the Transatlantic Trade and Investement Partnership (TTIP), negotiators met with 350 stakeholders, briefed 260 stakeholders, published several press releases and invited an hour-long press conference.
Happy Birthday To You, Copyrighted 04/07/2013 by Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment Prof. Owen Dean writes: Warner/Chappel Music, a music publishing company in the United States of America, claims and exerts copyright in the ubiquitous song “Happy Birthday to You”. It requires that royalty payments should be made to it each and every time this song is sung or used in public. This is a startling proposition as most people probably assume that the song is in the public domain and is free for use by all. An American documentary film maker agrees and is objecting to having to pay royalties to include the song in a film. It has consequently commenced legal proceedings before the US court seeking a declaration that the song is out of copyright and in the public domain. These court proceeding are currently attracting attention world-wide due to their somewhat bizarre nature. Meanwhile, under a bill in South Africa, celebrants of birthdays who do not obtain the necessary licence for singing “Happy Birthday” may in future bring the full wrath of the law down upon themselves through their unlawful conduct. Moreover, this situation could prevail in perpetuity.