Controversy over copyright reform in Brazil continues as two major newspapers publish opposing stories on a supposedly final version of the Ministry of Culture bill, leaked by a source within the federal government. On November 26th, Rio de Janeiro’s O…
The Indian Supreme Court will hear arguments in Novartis v Union of India on November 29. The case centers around section 3(D) of India’s patents act, which prohibits the patenting of a “new form of a known substance which does…
The Stop Online Piracy Act is scheduled for markup in the House Judiciary Committee on December 15. An aide to Rep. Lamar Smith (sponsor of the bill and chairman of the committee) told the Washington Post “He is open to…
On November 15, the European Parliament issued a resolution that “Stresses the need to protect the integrity of the global internet and freedom of communication by refraining from unilateral measures to revoke IP addresses or domain names.” The U.S. Department…
On November 16, the House Judiciary Committee held a hearing on H.R. 3261, the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA), the controversial legislation introduced by Rep. Smith to give the executive branch and IP owners more tools to fight online piracy.…
On the eve of a hearing on the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) in the U.S. House of Representatives, two releases from the research and academic community suggest that the current debate is on the wrong track. First, a new…
The U.S. House of Representatives is now debating the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA)—the counterpart to the Senate’s PROTECT IP Act. If passed, the bill will expand criminal penalties for copyright infringement and give the government (and private parties) new…
H.R. 3261 – Stopping Online Piracy Act (SOPA), recently introduced in the House by Lamar Smith, has received criticism from Members of Congress, Internet Service Providers, Library Associations, and civil society groups. Initial reactions from Public Knowledge, the Electronic Frontier…
U.S. Register of Copyrights Maria Pallante has published a report outlining the “Priorities and Special Projects of the U.S. Copyright Office” for the next two years. According to the copyright office press release: “Rogue websites, illegal streaming, small claims, orphan…
On October 28, the South African National Assembly debated the Intellectual Property Laws Amendments Bill, which aims to protect indigenous knowledge. Speaking before the House, Minister of Trade and Industry Rob Davies said “this IP Bill seeks to amend the…
On October 26, Rep. Lamar Smith introduced the Stopping Online Piracy Act (H.R. 3261), also called the Enforcing and Protecting American Rights Against Sites Intent on Theft and Exploitation Act (E-PARASTE Act.) H.R. 3261 is the House version of the…
California Governor Jerry Brown signed a bill sponsored by Sen. Alex Padilla that would allow police to search disk manufacturing plants without a warrant, and seize equipment used to manufacture illegal copies. Excerpt from S.B. 550: “Officers performing inspections may…