Developing Countries Lay Out E-Commerce Plan As Basis For WTO Ministerial 25/04/2017 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment A group of ministers from developing countries today released a roadmap for global digital commerce discussions, aimed at paving the way to discussions on electronic commerce at the World Trade Organization ministerial conference in December.
WHO: Hepatitis Death Toll Rising, Vaccination Works But Access To Tests And Medicines Still Issue 21/04/2017 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment Hepatitis-related mortality is on the rise, despite the existence of an efficient vaccine for hepatitis B and a cure for hepatitis C, according to the World Health Organization hepatitis report 2017 published today. One of the issues is that a majority of people are unaware of their condition due to limited access to affordable hepatitis testing. The price of the hepatitis C medicines has decreased in low-income countries, but still remains a barrier in upper-middle income and high-income countries, the WHO said.
Departure Of YouTube From Russia Could Result In Growth Of Pirated Content, Government Warns 20/04/2017 by Eugene Gerden for Intellectual Property Watch 2 Comments The use of pirated content in Russia may significantly increase in the event of a decision by leading foreign video-sharing websites and servers to leave the country due to the planned imposition of restrictions on their ownership by foreigners, which is currently being considered by the Russian government and the local Parliament (State Duma).
Civil Society-Led Monsanto Tribunal Finds Agro-Giant Guilty On All Counts 19/04/2017 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment An international civil society tribunal has found that agro-business multinational Monsanto conducts activities that violate basic human rights. The five international judges of the Monsanto Tribunal presented their condemning verdict yesterday.
Neglected Tropical Diseases: Gates Celebrates Industry Contribution, Chan Concurs 19/04/2017 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment Five years after health institutions and actors including pharmaceutical companies endorsed the London Declaration on Neglected Tropical Diseases, meant to support the World Health Organization to control and eradicate 10 specific diseases by 2020, new commitments were announced today (18 April) in Geneva.
Google’s Waymo v. Uber Lawsuit Reflects High-Stakes IP War In Hot Driverless Car Sector 17/04/2017 by Bruce Gain for Intellectual Property Watch 2 Comments Google’s Waymo claims Uber, an app-based taxi service, stole technology for a critical component for driverless cars, as the one of the world’s most-powerful tech titans wages a fierce legal battle to protect its intellectual property in an emerging area of the automotive industry.
Germany Brings Health Issues To G20; First Health Ministers Meeting In May 13/04/2017 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment Global health matters are entering into the Group of Twenty (G20) agenda under the German presidency of the group, which started in December 2016. The first-ever G20 Health Ministers’ meeting is scheduled to take place in May, before the regular G20 meeting in July. This week, a professor from the Graduate Institute of Geneva explained how health has become part of the G20 agenda.
Hiring Freeze At USPTO Concerns Industry Groups 11/04/2017 by Intellectual Property Watch 3 Comments Members of the United States innovator business community have delivered a letter to President Trump requesting that the US Patent and Trademark Office be exempt from the federal hiring freeze announced in January.
Revocation Of Broadband Rules Ossifying Poor Privacy Practices, Experts Say 05/04/2017 by Monika Ermert for Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment CHICAGO, Illinois – US President Trump Monday signed the repeal of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) broadband privacy rules passed by both houses of Congress in March. The decision by Congress and the new administration to smash the FCC broadband privacy rules, data security and security breach notification obligations do not bode well for internet users who want to have a say with regard to their confidentiality, according to a range of tech experts.
The Current And Future Scope Of IPR Estoppel 04/04/2017 by Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment David I. Berl and Christopher A. Suarez write: The estoppel provision of the America Invents Act, 35 U.S.C. 315(e), was touted originally as a check against patent challengers using inter partes review (“IPR”) proceedings to attack patents serially on the same or similar grounds. That provision precludes an IPR petitioner, or the real party in interest or privy of the petitioner, from asserting invalidity challenges in subsequent IPR, district court, or International Trade Commission (“ITC”) proceedings “on any ground that the petitioner raised or reasonably could have raised during” an IPR that resulted “in a final written decision.” Given the frequency of IPR and associated district court challenges, the scope of the AIA’s estoppel provision, with respect to the parties and arguments it estops, has become and will continue to be a critical and frequently contested issue for litigants.