Analysis at the intersection of intellectual
property law and the public interest.
[Germán Velásquez] Abstract: The negotiations of the Intergovernmental Working Group on Public Health, Innovation and Intellectual Property (IGWG) (2006-2008), undertaken by the Member States of the World Health Organization (WHO), were the result of a deadlock in the 2006 World Health Assembly where the Member States were unable to reach an agreement on what to do with the 60 recommendations
[Excerpt from op-ed in the Mail and Guardian by Ahmed Bawa] "Universities in South Africa pay more than 10 times as much for course-pack licences as their university presses gain in licensing revenue from course packs."
[IFLA] Modern creative industries have, to a large extent, built themselves on the basis of copyright. Their business models depend on having – or acquiring – rights to sell or use content, which they can then sell in exchange for remuneration. These rights are what lies behind the need to pay for initial access to a work. They are also
[Jyh-An Lee and Yangzi Li] Abstract: Conventional wisdom suggests that an ideal intellectual property (IP) regime should consider various interests, such as incentives for creators and inventors, social access to creative works, market competition, and economic development. Nevertheless, the interest of consumers has long been neglected in IP policy-making. This article systematically reviews recent Chinese court decisions on IP and
[Knowledge Commune] The Constitutional Court of Korea upheld Art. 29(2) of the Copyright Act as constitutional. The Art. 29(2) permits a public performance of commercial phonograms and audiovisual works if no profit is received in return from audience, excepting cases as prescribed by the Presidential Decree. This provision has long been under attack by music industries and European Commission.
The Daily Maverick reports that South African Minister of Trade and Industry Ebrahim Patel and U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer will soon meet to discuss a dispute over South Africa's proposed Copyright Amendments Bill. The U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) has launched a formal review of South Africa's trade benefits through the General System of Preferences (GSP), to investigate whether the