Meetings On IP And Innovation In Africa Open In Tanzania 12/03/2013 by Rachel Marusak Hermann, Intellectual Property Watch 4 Comments A ministerial-level meeting organised by the World Intellectual Property Organization, the Japan Patent Office, and the Tanzanian government began today in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. The two-day conference, which focuses on how IP can stimulate innovation and development, will be followed by a UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) meeting and a US Department of Commerce Commercial Law and Development Program (CLDP)-led workshop on IP use and protection at the same venue.
World Congress Hosts 5th Annual Corporate IP Counsel Forum 12/03/2013 by Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment The World Congress will host its 5th Annual Corporate IP Counsel Forum on 20-21 March in New York, NY.
US Defender Of Internet Freedom, Keen On Protecting IP Rights 08/03/2013 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch 4 Comments For the third year in a row, the United States mission to the United Nations in Geneva brought together human rights activists from different parts of the world in an effort to promote internet freedom. At a press briefing, a senior US State Department official described efforts to address challenges to freedom on the internet, and said that intellectual property in the context of internet is a complicated issue.
WTO: Wide Support For LDC TRIPS Extension, With A Hitch 06/03/2013 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch 5 Comments The World Trade Organization committee on intellectual property rights met this week and addressed a request by least developed countries for an extension of the period to enforce WTO intellectual property rules. LDCs want that the extension be extinguishable only after a country ceases to be considered as ‘least developed’, which developing countries largely supported. Developed countries, however, were hesitant about the terms of the proposed extension.
Academics Criticise Handling Of Cultural Diversity, Traditional Knowledge At International Level 06/03/2013 by Tiphaine Nunzia Caulier for Intellectual Property Watch 2 Comments At a recent conference jointly organised by the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies (IHEID, Geneva) and the Museum of Art and History of Geneva, academics tackled the question of the preservation of culture – in its natural and cultural dimension – against the risks of globalisation.
Monsanto v. Bowman: Stocktaking After Supreme Court Hearings 05/03/2013 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch 7 Comments The United States Supreme Court recently heard oral arguments in the case opposing a US farmer to agro-industry giant Monsanto on the issue of patent exhaustion in patented seeds. Lead lawyers in the case and others offered comments on the heels of the hearing, while the Supreme Court Justices are considering the arguments and are expected to reach a decision sometime this spring.
Patent Pool-ViiV Collaboration On Paediatric HIV Sparks Reactions, Hope 04/03/2013 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment The Medicines Patent Pool has announced a ground-breaking collaboration with a private sector joint venture that it said will facilitate greater availability of critical medicines for children with HIV worldwide. The announcement caused a wave of positive reactions across the public health community, with many hoping for more in the future.
Speakers Outline Ideas For Africa To Find Appropriate IP Policies 01/03/2013 by Linda Daniels for Intellectual Property Watch 6 Comments Johannesburg, South Africa – Africa is still held captive by colonial borders and has failed to collectively leverage benefit-sharing agreements that result from multinationals’commercial pursuit of indigenous knowledge, said speakers at the Africa IP conference this week.
Global Health Giants, Trade Deals, And IP Play Central Role In 2013 Public Health Policy 28/02/2013 by Rachel Marusak Hermann, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment The role of intellectual property in a wide range of public health challenges – access to medicines, vaccine prices, procurement strategies, and research for diseases of the poor – is a focal point in 2013 cutting across national, regional, and international policymaking.
WIPO Members Struggle To Define Work Programme On Patents And Health 27/02/2013 by Rachel Marusak Hermann, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment As the World Intellectual Property Organization’s patent law committee grapples with starkly differing positions on the topic of patents and health, the secretariats of WIPO, the World Health Organization and World Trade Organization presented to members how their first trilateral study on access to medical technologies and innovation could be used as an effective resource. While the secretariats emphasised the neutral, informative nature of the book, some members pointed to a need for greater analysis of the challenges developing countries face when trying to use patent flexibilities for access to medicines.