Knowledge Ecology International

Noting that the “decisive factors in productivity have shifted from land and capital to know-how, technology and skill,” and the need for an intellectual property system that will “balance the private rights of inventors with the public needs of society” the Holy See gave the following opening statement at the 51th WIPO General Assembly.

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Statement by H.E. Archbishop Silvano M. Tomasi, Permanent Representative of the Holy See to the United Nations and Other International Organizations in Geneva
51th Series of Meetings of the WIPO Assemblies
September 24,  2013

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Delivered September 24, 2013, during NGO statements on agenda Item 5.

Thank you for the opportunity to speak today.

As regards the Marrakesh treaty, KEI offers its sincere and profound thanks to Secretary Francis Gurry, Ambassador Trevor Clarke, Michelle Woods and Geidy Lung and others members of the WIPO staff for their dedication to a successful conclusion to this difficult negotiation.

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This was the Developement Agenda Group (DAG) statement from Monday at the WIPO Geneval Assembly.

Thank you Madam President.

First of all, I would like to congratulate you upon your election as Chair of the General Assembly of WIPO. Our group is confident that under your able stewardship we will achieve important results for developing countries, as well as for the intellectual property system.

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On 4 September 2013, the Department of Trade and Industry (the DTI) of the Republic of South Africa released its long-awaited “Draft National Policy on Intellectual Property“. This policy framework was gazetted in the Government Gazette as Vol. 579, No. 36816. Public comments will be accepted until 17 October 2013.

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More than two-and-a-half years ago, the United States tabled their text for the intellectual property chapter at the Fifth Round of negotiations which took place in February 2011 in Santiago, Chile. In March 2011, that text was leaked and contained many aggressive proposals as well as some placeholder text for pharmaceuticals in other areas. Continue Reading →

Seven out of eight persons want the NIH to use its rights in federally funded patents to prevent U.S. consumers from paying more than other high income countries, according to a survey of 170 randomly selected U.S. residents. The survey was conducted August 26 to August 28, 2013, and involved two questions regarding NIH funded drug development.

Question 1.

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On Wednesday, 27 August, the 19th round of TPP negotiations held its “stakeholder engagement” day.

Chief’s briefing changed to “dialogue”

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On August 23, 2013, the TPP Ministerial meeting concluded with a press briefing. Stakeholders were not allowed to attend, but according to media sources, the briefing lasted only 20 minutes and reportedly the ministers only took a handful of questions before ending the briefing. Apparently, Ambassador Froman confirmed that the October 2013 deadline was not possible, but that countries were now looking for “milestones” by October with the hope of concluding the agreement by the end of the year.

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The 19th round of Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPP) began this week in Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei. Although this round just started yesterday, it is evident that there are many differences between this round and previous rounds.

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Today the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) announced KEI Director James Love as one of four distinguished winners of the 2013 Pioneer Awards. The annual award recognizes the leaders who are extending freedom and innovation on the electronic frontier. In addition to Love, this year’s fellow honorees are Aaron Swartz, the late digital rights activist, and Glenn Greenwald and Laura Poitras, the journalists that broke the Edward Snowden/NSA stories.

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