Year: 2010

Just in case anyone does not appreciate how difficult it will be to change the USTR direction on ACTA, note that today the USTR proudly put this letter on the USTR Blog:

http://www.ustr.gov/about-us/press-office/blog/2010/march/new-information-ustrgov/acta

(Maybe best to first skip down to see who signed it).

March 22, 2010

The Honorable Barack Obama
President of the United States
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington, D.C. 20500

Continue Reading →

When I first heard David Mann representing the World Blind Union at the information session of November 2003 SCCR, call for the “creation of international agreements which would allow the unhindered transfer of accessible material created in one country to blind and partially sighted people in another country”, I did not know that this issue had been the subject of a WIPO/UNESCO report in 1983, which had then proposed Model Provisions Concer Continue Reading →

On March 5, 2010, KEI published documents received from a FOIA request, about a collaboration between the USPTO and Pfizer to hold workshops in India. On March 11, the USPTO responded with a statement of regret concerning the collaboration, which it termed a mistake.

The Business Standard of India has written an article about the USPTO/Pfizer collaboration here:

Continue Reading →

KEI has access to a recent draft of ACTA. Chapter One, Section B of the agreement provides for “General Definitions.” It is interesting that the term “counterfeits” does not have a general definition. The ten defined terms include:

• days
• intellectual property (See below)
• Council (ACTA Oversight Council)
• measure
• person (natural or juridical)
• right owner (includes federation or assicaitons that have legal standing or authoirty to assert rights)

Continue Reading →

On April 23, 2010 and May 27-28, 2010, WIPO will hold open-ended consultations on copyright limitations and exceptions for persons with print disabilities and on the protection of audiovisual performances as mandated by the conclusions of the 19th session of the WIPO Standing Committee on Copyright and Related Rights (SCCR).

Continue Reading →

The 8th round of the Anti Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA) negotiations is scheduled to take place in Wellington, New Zealand from April 12-16, 2010. The March 3 draft agenda obtained by KEI provides details of the program, venue and logistics, and also notes that:

New Zealand intends to hold a function for stakeholders and delegates on the evening of Tuesday 13 April from 18.00, which will be an opportunity for stakeholders to meet and interact with ACTA negotiators.

Continue Reading →

KEI has access to yet undisclosed sections of the negotiating ACTA text. The text is organized in 6 chapters. The longest is Chapter 2 on “legal framework for enforcement of intellectual property rights.” The second longest is Chapter 5, on “Institutional Arrangements.” In ten pages of text, the ACTA negotiators have set out a plan to create a new institution to administer, implement and modify ACTA. Continue Reading →

(Updated March 17, 2010, 12pm).

KEI has learned that the European Union has proposed language in the ACTA negotiations to require criminal penalties for “inciting, aiding and abetting” certain offenses, including “at least in cases of willful trademark counterfeiting and copyright or related rights piracy on a commercial scale.”

The EU proposal is reported on a recent (but still secret) version of the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement Consolidated Text, and reads as follows:

Continue Reading →

Below are asks from the 2010 PhRMA submission to the USTR Special 301 list on the topic of drug pricing and reimbursement decisions, and described as ‘Market Access Barriers.’ In its assertions, PhRMA attack countries for government price negotiations, making use of reference pricing, the insufficient involvement of pharmaceutical companies in setting government pricing policies and the composition of drug formularies, among other things.

CHINA

Continue Reading →

See update at the end. ———-

Continue Reading →