2015: Virotas Biopharmaceuticals. KEI and Public Citizen ask NIH for safeguards in license for HCV patents
Other KEI comments on NIH licenses are found here: /nih-licenses
TRIPS Council (October 2014): India calls for de-linkage and innovation inducement prizes at WTO discussions on IP & innovation
In advance of the World Trade Organization’s October 2014 session of the TRIPS Council, the European Union, Switzerland and the United States made a written request to the TRIPS Council to discuss “Intellectual Property and Innovation: Promoting Awareness; Case Studies” under agenda item 12. This marked the 7th time that the United States tabled an item to the TRIPS Council relating to intellectual property or innovation.
In the context of these October 2014 discussions of Intellectual Property and Innovation, the Government of India delivered the following intervention asserting that,
Twenty groups write Congress, no fast track without public access to trade agreement negotiating texts
Twenty groups, including KEI, have written Congress, asking the Congress to provide public access to draft trade agreement texts and U.S. proposals throughout negotiations, and to specific that only agreements developed through such processes should obtain any expedited congressional consideration.
Among other things, the groups said:
KEI, KEI Europe, and Essential Inventions ask five companies for licenses to HCV patents
On March 18, 2015, KEI, KEI Europe, and Essential Inventions submitted proposals for global voluntary licences for all patents necessary for hepatitis C (HCV) medicines to five drug companies — AbbVie, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Gilead, Janssen, and Merck.
HRC28: Statement of the European Union- Cultural Rights (Response to SR Report on Copyright and Right to Science and Culture)
On Wednesday, 11 March 2015, Oliver Hall-Allen, First Counsellor, Delegation of the European Union to the United Nations Office in Geneva delivered the following statement in response to the presentation of the Special Rapporteur in the Field of Cultural Rights (Farida Shaheed) on her Report on Copyright policy and the right to science and culture (A/HRC/28/57).
Oliver Hall-Allen (blue tie, white shirt), First Counsellor, Delegation of the European Union to the United Nations Office in Geneva
HRC28: Statement of the United States of America – Cultural Rights (Response to SR Report on Copyright and Right to Culture)
On Wednesday, 11 March 2015, Ambassador Keith Harper, U.S. Representative to the Human Rights Council, delivered the following statement to the 28th Session of the Human Rights Council on the topic of cultural rights. Continue Reading
HRC28: Statement by Farida Shaheed, Special Rapporteur, on Copyright policy and the right to science and culture
On Wednesday, 11 March 2015, Farida Shaheed, the United Nations Special Rapporteur in the field of cultural rights presented her seminal report on Copyright policy and the right to science and culture (A/HRC/28/57) at the 28th session of the Human Rights Council in Geneva.
Highlights from the report’s recommendations include the following:
WTO at 20: Symposium on the TRIPS Agreement for TRIPS Council Members and Observers (26 February 2015)
As part of the World Trade Organization’s (WTO) technical assistance and capacity building program, on Thursday, 26 February 2015, the WTO Secretariat convened a Symposium on the TRIPS Agreement for TRIPS Council Members and Observers which brought together negotiators from the 1986–94 Uruguay Round to discuss how the Round introduced intellectual property norms into the architecture of the multilateral trading system. In addition, other experts were brought in to discuss what has happened since the introduction of the TRIPS Agreement, and what augurs for the future.
St Jude’s influenza patents, with US government rights
St Jude holds 24 patents with influenza in the specification, that also disclose US government rights. Some of these were discussed here: /node/2188
PAT. NO. Title
1 8,574,592 Modified influenza virus for monitoring and improving vaccine efficiency
2 8,551,481 Anti-cancer vaccine composition comprising an anti-CD223 antibody and kit comprising an anti-cancer vaccine and an anti-CD223 antibody
3 8,309,099 DNA transfection system for the generation of negative strand RNA virus
Continue Reading
2009: CDC FOIA regarding intellectual property on avian flu intellectual property rights
Our 2009 FOIA request, and 42 pages of CDC emails debating what to give us.
/misc-docs/FOIA/14-01041-cdc-foia-frequest-2009.pdf
The February 17, 2015 cover letter from CDC.
/wp-content/uploads/CDC_17feb2015_FOIA_CoverLetter.pdf
The 184 page CDC foia response, which we received in February 2015. Note that we were particularly interested in the patent issues related to reverse genetics.