"Today the WIPO SCCR decided against scheduling a diplomatic conference to create a new treaty on broadcasting, and set a high bar for doing so. Technically, the subject of the Broadcasting Treaty will continue to be on the agenda of the WIPO Standing Committee on Copyright and Related Rights, but with a fairly tough hurdle before it can move to a diplomatic conference — after there is agreement on the objectives, scope and object of protection, topics for which there is no agreement in sight.
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My more recent Huffington Post blog on the negotiations is here, including this update:
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We call upon WIPO delegates to reject the proposed WIPO Broadcast Treaty.
After more than 9 years of discussions, efforts to find a treaty formulation that deals with piracy of broadcast signals, but which does not harm copyright owners and the legitimate users of broadcasts have failed.
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This statement was delivered by the United States of America to the plenary of the WIPO Standing Committee on Copyright and Related Rights on Tuesday, 19 June 2007.
Thank you Mr. Chairman. The United States would like to congratulate you and your Vice-Chairs on your re-election.
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I arrived at WIPO yesterday for Day 1 which started at 12pm. The delegates and NGOs went for lunch at 1pm and the meeting started again in the afternoon. I’m not sure it was because of jetlag but the meeting did not make much sense. The Chair was re-elected (of course) and he just talked, talked and talked.
Day 2
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The WIPO Standing Committee on Copyright (SCCR), the WIPO body overseeing the negotiations on the broadcasting treaty began at 12:04 PM. The reason for its late start was because the African Group had consultations in the morning.
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The TRIPS, in Part III, Section 4, has a number of obligations on countries for border measures. These measures require some mechanism to prevent imports of infringing products, but they also give WTO Member States considerable flexibility.
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May 30, 2007, "The New US Trade Agenda and Access to Medicines"
March 16, 2007, Robin Hanson on “Why Grants Won Over Prizes in Science.”
March 15, 2007. Sakiko Fukuda-Parr presents on "The Gene Revolution: GM Crops and Unequal Development."
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Prize4Life is an effort to accelerate treatments for Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS). It was created by 32 year old Avichai “Avi” Kremer. According to news reports Kremer was diagnosed with ALS in 2004, and has only a few years to live. He started Prize4Life to raise money for prizes to stimulation research.
Here are some extracts from this moving story in the March 28 issue of the Boston Globe:
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The attached is a February 24, 2005 letter signed by 162 experts, asking the World Health Organization to Evaluate New Treaty Framework for Medical Research and Development The proposal for a Medical R&D Treaty (MRDT) was designed as an alternative… Continue Reading →