Intellectual Property Watch

Legislation giving new powers to the government and copyright holders in the United States to unilaterally block payments to or take down websites deemed by US courts to be infringing intellectual property rights has been introduced into the House of Representatives. Now the policy fight begins. Related Articles:

• Tech Industry Sees Harm To Internet In US “Rogue Website” Bill
• Sounding The Alarm: Return Of US Legislation Against Global “Rogue” Websites
• Tech Industry Raises Concern Over Protect IP Act

An unusual sight met passers-by at the World Intellectual Property Organization around lunchtime today. The street was crowded with several fire trucks and yellow security tape kept people away from the entrance to the main building. A number of WIPO staff were outside waiting to know if they could go back to their work stations after a fire started in the WIPO basement around 11:30, according to a security source. According to another source on the site, the fire was rapidly under control but smoke had spread and the electricity was down. Related Articles:

• Let The WIPO Dialogues Begin!
• WIPO Says Cybersquatting Filings Sharply Up, Watches ICANN’s Domain Name Expansion
• WIPO Goes To Bat For Trademark Owners At ICANN

“Neglected tropical diseases are century-old diseases and today we see new hope,” Margaret Chan, director general of the World Health Organisation, told a crowd at yesterday’s launch of a new public-private collaboration to develop medicines for the poorest countries. The project, called Re:Search, was launched at the World Intellectual Property Organization. Related Articles:

• New WIPO-WHO Drug R&D Database For Neglected Disease Licences
• WIPO Re:Search Webpage Goes Live, Shows Sponsors
• Partnership To Share Research, Keep IP Rights, On Neglected Diseases

A patent for a conventionally bred form of the common household vegetable broccoli appears to be on its way to acceptance by the European Patent Office following a change to the patent by the company filing it, according to sources. The decision not to revoke the patent, which has been the subject of protests and now calls for action in national courts, could clear the way for hundreds of other vegetable patents to follow, a source said. Related Articles:

• UPOV Sprouts A New Public Face – As Farmers Protest
• US Farmers Sue Monsanto Over GMO Patents, Demand Right To Conventional Crops
• “Washington Declaration” Demands Return Of Public Interest In IP Rights

Enforcement of intellectual property proved to be a point of contention among World Trade Organization members at this week’s meeting of the Council on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS). Meanwhile, despite debate, the Council extended the deadline for members to accept a TRIPS amendment on public health, leaving the December WTO ministerial to consider that extension plus an extension on a moratorium on so-called non-violation cases under TRIPS. Related Articles:

• WTO IP Committee Addresses Medicines Access, Plain-Packaged Tobacco, ACTA
• Patentable Subject Matter, IP Waiver For Health Discussed At WTO

The US Copyright Office today issued its priorities and projects for the next two years, targeting studies, legislation, trade and foreign relations, and administrative law. Related Articles:

• EU Extends Copyright Protection From 50 To 70 Years
• Maria Pallante Named Head Of US Copyright Office
• Copyright Vital For Authors, Adaptable For Wide Access, WIPO Panellists Say

The webpage of the new Re:Search IP licensing database project at the World Intellectual Property Organization partnered with the BIO Ventures for Global Health foundation is now live, and shows a range of corporate, foundation and academic cosponsors lined up for tomorrow's launch. Related Articles:

• WIPO Re:Search Bridges Public, Private Sectors For Neglected Disease Research
• New WIPO-WHO Drug R&D Database For Neglected Disease Licences
• Workplan Of WHO Group On Neglected Diseases R&D Shows Timeline

The Philippines Intellectual Property Office has issued a statement in response to criticism that an IP enforcement meeting it is hosting this week with numerous corporate representatives "does not favor big corporations." Related Articles:

• WIPO Defends Involvement In IP Enforcement Meeting In The Philippines
• Studies Inform WIPO Enforcement Meeting As Development Issues Debated
• An Urgent Letter From Intellectual Property Watch

It is often said the internet was created in the United States, though techies around at the time are quick to point out the international efforts that were involved. Since its creation, US management of the internet domain name system has been internationalised through the creation and gradual independence of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN). But the US has always kept its hand on one critical aspect of the internet - and is now putting it up for bid. Related Articles:

• US Gets Threatening Over ICANN’s New Internet Domain Plan
• ICANN Warns US Not To Undermine Multistakeholder Model
• ICANN Suggests Moving Internet From US Control

The World Intellectual Property Organization, a United Nations agency with nearly 200 member states, is under criticism for its connection with a Western industry-heavy event this week in the Philippines aimed at fighting intellectual property counterfeiting and piracy. The concern from technology industry and consumer advocates is that WIPO is involved in an overly one-sided event and did not sufficiently notify its diverse membership or the public of its activities. Related Articles:

• Philippines IP Office: ‘Our Meeting Is Not Fostering Corporate Greed’
• Studies Inform WIPO Enforcement Meeting As Development Issues Debated
• US Ambassador: Over-Focus On Development “Will Kill” WIPO

The World Trade Organization committee responsible for intellectual property rights issues is meeting this week and will address several items of potential debate, including a nearly unused 2003 provision for compulsory-licensed medicines exports to poor countries, a WTO member’s attempt to discourage smoking through unlabelled tobacco packaging, and IP enforcement raised by a small but potent group of WTO members who negotiated the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA). Related Articles:

• Plain Packaging For Tobacco Raises IPR Questions At WTO
• Top IP-Watch Stories Of 2010: Copyright Fights, ACTA, Medicines Access
• Trade And Access To Medicines: Things The WTO Should Consider

Members of the Paris-based United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) are preparing to vote to allow Palestine to become a member, according to sources. If this happens, it could create uncertainty about United States membership in UN agencies, including the World Intellectual Property Organization. Related Articles:

• Questions Arise Over UN Policy On Non-Communicable Diseases And IP Rights
• US Senator Questions Constitutionality Of ACTA
• WIPO Defends Involvement In IP Enforcement Meeting In The Philippines

US companies are generally known to be much more litigious than non-US companies. Thus, if you are a non-US company looking to enter the US market, it is prudent to understand the nuances of responding to a cease and desist letter. While cease and desist letters can be upsetting and sometimes confusing, there are a series of steps that companies can take to be better prepared in the event that they do receive one. Related Articles:

• An Urgent Letter From Intellectual Property Watch
• Trading’s End: Is ACTA The Leading Edge Of A Protectionist Wave?
• US Senator Questions Constitutionality Of ACTA

On the occasion of its 50th anniversary, the International Union for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants (UPOV) is trying to dispel its image as a non-transparent organisation and is working on a new user-friendly website with public access to a number of formerly reserved documents. Meanwhile, for the first time farmers protested outside the UPOV building in Geneva, as they seek to preserve the ancient practice of saving seeds from their harvests to use the next year. Related Articles:

• UPOV Marks 50 Years; Breeders Seek More Enforcement, Civil Society Wants In
• FAO Seed Treaty Carries Hope, Addressing Country Contributions, Farmers Concerns
• WIPO Seminar: IP Is Spearhead Of Agricultural Innovation, Solution To Food Shortage

This week the International Union for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants (UPOV) is celebrating its 50th anniversary. The Union is often criticised by civil society as being opaque, but plant breeders seem reasonably content with the latest version of the convention. However, some breeders that do not rely on seeds to reproduce their plants are seeking a clarification in the convention to prevent illegal use of their protected varieties. Related Articles:

• An Urgent Letter From Intellectual Property Watch
• UPOV Sprouts A New Public Face – As Farmers Protest
• Indigenous Peoples Won’t Be “Wished Away” In Traditional Knowledge Treaty Talks

A global meeting entitled “Enabling Creativity in the Digital Environment: Copyright Documentation and Infrastructure” was held at the World Intellectual Property Organization 13-14 October. Gathering representatives of governments, business leaders, academics, and other stakeholders, the conference was organised in the framework of the Development Agenda Thematic Project on Intellectual Property and the Public Domain. Related Articles:

• An Urgent Letter From Intellectual Property Watch
• Top IP-Watch Stories Of 2010: Copyright Fights, ACTA, Medicines Access
• Copyright System Must “Adapt Or Perish,” WIPO Director Says

The World Intellectual Property Organization, in conjunction with the World Health Organization, private sector and foundation partners, is preparing to launch a new voluntary database for the sharing of intellectual property for research and development on medicines, vaccines and diagnostics for neglected diseases, according to sources in Geneva. Related Articles:

• Workplan Of WHO Group On Neglected Diseases R&D Shows Timeline
• An Urgent Letter From Intellectual Property Watch
• WHO Calls For Proposals To Finance R&D For Diseases Affecting Developing World

The European Union high court today outlawed the patenting of human embryo stem cells for scientific research or commercial purposes. The decision has forced European courts to examine the “ethical boundaries of patenting,” said Greenpeace, which challenged a German patent in the case. While there are alternate methods for obtaining stem cells, the ruling will nevertheless affect some research, one patent lawyer said. Related Articles:

• WIPO Members Discuss Patent Quality, Public Health, Exceptions
• An Urgent Letter From Intellectual Property Watch
• Myriad Outcome: Winds Shift Again For Gene Patenting In The US

The World Trade Organization today concluded a four-day training session to help officials from developing countries better understand the flexibilities to intellectual property rights built into international trade rules on IP. Related Articles:

• UNCTAD: Bundle Of Opportunities To Improve Medicines Access In LDCs
• Neglected Diseases R&D Financing Proposals Shaping Up At WHO
• Kenya Opens Region’s Door To GM Maize

The Protect IP Act, currently pending in the United States Senate, contains a range of steps designed to support the holders of American copyrights and trademarks by fighting a specific part of the online infringement problem: “rogue” websites whose primary or intended use is the infringement of US copyrights or trademarks. The bill would take promising new steps to diminish the financial rewards of IPR infringement - but it is saddled with ill-advised information blocking provisions that should, and probably will, be prevented from passing the Senate in its current form, writes David Robinson. Related Articles:

• US Chamber Urges More IP Protection As Job Booster; Tech Supporters Disagree
• WIPO Panel Weighs Role Of Internet Intermediaries In Online Copyright Infringement
• Sounding The Alarm: Return Of US Legislation Against Global “Rogue” Websites