International Property Rights Newsletter – April 9, 2015 N.29
International Property Rights Newsletter – April 9, 2015, N.29
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News & Events
4/20, 12:00PM-5:00PM
U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s Global Intellectual Property Center
2015 IP Champions Conference
More details on the program can be found here
Realizing the Worldwide Vision of Antony Fisher The event will take place on April 16 – it starts with a luncheon at 12pm and concludes at 5pm. It will be held at the One Washington Circle Hotel: One Washington Circle NW, Washington, DC, 20037
More details on the program can be found here
North America What if we don’t have sufficient intellectual property rights? A significant body of economic work establishes that strong, effective intellectual property rights foster innovation, especially in high tech industries. Moreover, innovation creates sustained economic growth and economic growth creates jobs. Accordingly, any commitment to U.S. jobs must start with a commitment to effective IP rights.Continue Reading
USTR Publishes Notorious Markets List The United States Trade Representative (“USTR”) serves the function of developing United States trade policy and overseeing negotiations with our trading partners. On March 5, 2015, USTR published its 2014 Out-of-Cycle Review of Notorious Markets List, which highlights online and physical markets that engage in copyright piracy and trademark counterfeiting.Continue Reading
Potential changes to the Canadian Competition Bureau’s Intellectual Property Enforcement Guidelines may be a game-changer for technology companies and firms in patent-intensive industries The Canadian Competition Bureau is in the midst of a two-stage process to update its Intellectual Property Enforcement Guidelines (“IPEGs”). The IPEGs describe the Bureau’s approach to the interface between competition law and intellectual property rights, and its enforcement approach to conduct involving the exercise of IP rights. Continue Reading
DOJ eyes music regulation update The change, pushed by artists ranging from Melissa Etheridge to Richie Sambora to Tom Waits, could give songwriters and publishers more negotiating power with streaming services — and even allow them to withhold songs if talks break down. For Pandora, which has more than 80 million active users but has never had a profitable year, the revision could add to expenses and create new business hurdles.Continue Reading
The Sure-Fire Way To Undermine Prosperity — Passing Laws That Erode Property Rights Why are some American cities thriving, growing in population, investment, and incomes, while others are in decline with shrinking populations, crumbling buildings, and businesses fleeing? Continue Reading
CEOs tell Congress: Patent trolls are giving us the shakedown Overstock’s top lawyer, Mark Griffin, told lawmakers on Wednesday that the company spends millions to scare away so-called patent trolls, but that many other retailers can’t afford to do the same and choose to settle instead. This amounts, he said, to “a tax on innocent operating companies.” Continue Reading
Ibero-America How Technology Can Protect Consumers and Pharma Companies From Fake Drugs Sadly, people will die from counterfeit drugs. Interpol estimates that 10% to 30% of all pharmaceutical drugs in circulation in the world are counterfeit and that up to 1 million people will die annually from counterfeit pharmaceuticals. So, it’s time to end the myth that counterfeiting is a victimless crime – especially in the fake pharmaceutical drug trade. Continue Reading
Mexico said to lead anti-software piracy drive Mexico remains Latin America’s pioneer in combatting software piracy, though other countries are also taking a stand as the levels of unlicensed software drop region-wide, Rodger Correa, marketing director for the Business Software Alliance (BSA), told BNamericas. Continue Reading
Europe/Eastern Europe The Italian IP Box – the final version converted into Law On 24 March 2015 the Investment Compact Decree (published on January 2015) was finally converted into law, with a number of modifications to the Italian patent box (IP Box) approved at the end of last year.Continue Reading Apple Watch’s Swiss debut delayed by patent snag Apple may have to wait a little longer before it can go toe-to-toe with the luxury watchmakers in their home country. The launch of Apple Watch could be delayed in Switzerland, known as the birthplace of luxury watches, due to a patent owned by watch brand Leonard, which bars the tech titan from using the image of an apple or the word “apple” within the country, according to Swiss broadcaster RTS. Reuters earlier picked up on the report. Continue Reading
UK: Intellectual Property Office publishes advice on exhibition of copyright protected works On 24 March 2015, the UK Intellectual Property Office published “Copyright notice: public exhibition of copyright works”, a notice aimed at libraries, museums, galleries and other institutions who may wish to exhibit works which are copyright protected. The notice is informative and outlines the difference between having literary, dramatic, artistic or musical works on public display, a legitimate act not infringing copyright laws, and performing these works in public, which could constitute copyright infringement. Continue Reading
WIPO Seminar On TK, Genetic Resources: Variations In Public Domain, Disclosure The concept of public domain was born out of the intellectual property system, according to some. However, what constitutes the public domain depends on national interpretations. A recent seminar organised by the World Intellectual Property Organization was an occasion for speakers from diverse horizons to present their experience in the context of traditional knowledge and genetic resources. The relevance of a disclosure requirement in patent application to prevent wrongful patents was also discussed. Continue Reading
Eurasia Online Movie Sales Double in Russia Following Tightened Piracy Laws Online sales of movies have been on the rise in Russia since the country’s anti-piracy law was tightened in 2013. Alexei Volin, deputy communications minister, told Russian radio station Kommersant FM that online sales of movies and television programs had doubled over the last 18 months, while the number of users buying legitimate online content has risen dramatically to 12 million people. Continue Reading
Asia/Southeast Asia For S. Korean businesses, China patent blitz is a clear and present danger In 2010, a small South Korean business had just begun selling a touch recognition smartphone glove on the Chinese online shopping mall Alibaba when it unexpectedly started receiving notices of patent infringement. They had been sent all at once by three to four Chinese businesses and individuals who claimed to hold utility model patent rights to the glove. Continue Reading 7-Eleven seeks colour trademark The operator of 7-Eleven stores in Japan has applied for a trademark for the colour combination of orange, green and red featured in its logo. The application by Seven-Eleven Japan Co is one of 470 made to the Japan Patent Office under a new system adopted on April 1 for non-traditional trademarks such as sounds and colours. Continue Reading
Encouraging innovation and enforcing IP rights Enforcement of Trade-Related Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS), including Intellectual Property (IP) rights, is important for encouraging innovation and creation, technological development, promotion of fair competition and protection of consumer rights. It is, however, observed that the protection and enforcement of IP rights in a least developed country (LDC) like Bangladesh are far behind the desired level. Continue Reading
Thailand Toughens Copyright Law To Deal With Internet Providers, Unlawful Movie Recording In Theaters Thailand has toughened its copyright law to include, for the first time, responsibility of intermediaries, or internet service providers, for infringement of copyright work on the internet, and separately, to penalise people who record movies being shown in theatres without authorisation with a maximum imprisonment of four years. Continue Reading
Investors Growing Concerned at Lack of Promised Indian IP Reform Foreign investors are growing wary and impatient at the lack of tangible Intellectual Property reforms in India, according to a new report released by the National Bureau of Asian Research (NBA). As a result, India risks driving away firms entirely, or severely reducing the foreign investment that a firm is willing to devote to India. Continue Reading
Middle East/Africa Kenya: Kam Warns of Health Danger From Counterfeit Medicines The Kenya Association of Manufacturers has warned of an impending health crisis in the country resulting from the trade in counterfeit goods. Continue Reading
Zimbabwe: Land Seizures Speeding Up, Leaving Africans Homeless and Landless There is a new scramble for Africa, with ordinary people facing displacement by the affluent and the powerful as huge tracts of land on the continent are grabbed by a minority, rights activists here say. Continue Reading
Kuwait plans anti-cyber piracy laws The Kuwaiti National Assembly is planning to issue legislations intended to combat cyber piracy and warfare, said a visiting Kuwaiti lawmaker. MP Saif Al-Azmi, member of the Kuwaiti Parliamentary Caucus, stated that the National Assembly is seeking to examine other nations’ experience in the field, in preparation for issuance of laws aimed at facing electronic piracy and wars. Continue Reading
Australasia Ending online piracy in Australia long overdue, say rights holders Blocking online piracy is long overdue in Australia and should steer consumers towards legitimate services for their music, movies and TV shows, stakeholders say. The federal government has introduced draft laws to block overseas websites facilitating online piracy, potentially blocking Australians from downloading popular programs like Game of Thrones for free. Continue Reading
Intellectual property – the Swiss army knife of business tools Fortunately over the last 10 or 15 years, New Zealand businesses have come to appreciate that it’s not just one or the other – IP can also be used as a lever. Even though regrettably few seem to actually use it, they at least understand that through ownership and control of their IP they can sell or license it to others in fields of activity they’re not involved in, or derive revenue from their IP in territories they can’t reach on their own. Continue Reading
Party coming to end for Aussie pirates There must be hundreds of thousands, perhaps millions, of Aussies sweating bullets right now. That was my first thought when I read Federal Court Justice Nye Perram’s verdict in the Dallas Buyers Club illegal download case. Continue Reading
Free-Trade and Property Rights
Trans-Pacific Partnership Hollywood joins push for Obama’s Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal The U.S. entertainment industry is joining in a last-ditch push to sway wavering Democratic lawmakers to back President Obama’s pro-trade agenda, as his hard-fought Pacific Rim trade deal heads to an uncertain end game. Continue Reading
We need trade promotion authority more than ever Trade promotion authority is showing signs of life as Republican congressional leaders and senior White House officials try to forge ahead on the one critical area on which they share common ground. The usual battle lines have been drawn. Top business groups are urging passage to grant authority for negotiating trade deals. Union leaders have been lobbying to demonstrate heavy-handed opposition.Continue Reading
Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership Obama’s Big Chance To Boost Economy: Free Trade American businesses of all sizes increasingly depend on access to international markets for buying and selling goods and services that will expand our economy, create jobs and increase economic efficiency in nearly every sector of the economy. Continue Reading
“Hot Issue”
Plain Packaging Court challenge against government plain tobacco packaging plans begins next week The Irish Courts will next week begin hearing the first case of its kind taken against the State over plans to introduce plain tobacco products. Continue Reading
France imposes plain packages for cigarettes in anti-cancer drive France is to impose plain packaging for cigarettes as part of an anti-cancer drive that also sees extra taxes on manufacturers and more steps to stop sales to minors.Continue Reading All Recipients are free to copy and redistribute the newsletter in any medium or format with proper attribution to Property Rights Alliance
