Advocating for a world where intellectual
property law serves the public interest.

Representing the Public Domain at the EU Observatory on Infringements of IPR

[John Hendrik Weitzmann, Communia Assoc., Link, (CC0)] Last week Communia joined the “European Observatory on Infringements of IPR” which is hosted by the European Union’s Office of Harmonization in the Internal Market (OHIM). The Observatory’s task is to provide the EU Commission with insights on every aspect of IPR infringement. It does so primarily by conducting […]

TPP Trade Ministers’ Report to Leaders Claims Overall Progress, Indicates Tough Negotiations on Intellectual Property

The 12 heads of state of the nations negotiating the Trans Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPP) met in Beijing today, where they issued a statement indicating they have”instructed our Ministers and negotiators to make concluding this agreement a top priority.” However, their statement did not discuss a deadline or timeframe. They also released a “Trade Ministers’ […]

The Intellectual Property Chapter of the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement and Investment in Developing Nations

University of Pennsylvania Journal of International Law, Vol. 35, No. 4, 2014. Abstract: The United States has some of the highest standards of intellectual property protection in the world, though many copyright and patent laws in the United States are limited through balancing provisions that provide exceptions to the exclusive rights conferred by the […]

Civil society concerns over India-US Joint Working Group

[Cross posted from TWN, Link] Several civil society organisations and individuals have expressed earnest concerns over the India-United States Joint Working Group on Intellectual Property. A collective sign-on letter from more than 50 organisations, networks and individuals to India’s Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi sets out the concerns over the decision to establish the Working […]

Music Industry Constituents Gather at Georgetown University for the Future of Music Policy Summit

The Future of Music Coalition, one of the leading music policy advocates in Washington, held its fourteenth annual Policy Summit at Georgetown University on October 27 and 28. The Summit featured a variety of panels geared toward musicians, agents, managers, promoters, and lawyers alike. The first panel of the two-day event included representatives from several […]

European Copyright Society: Limitations and Exceptions as Key Elements of the Legal Framework for Copyright in the EU

Opinion on the Judgment of the CJEU in Case C-201/13 Deckmyn Abstract: In this opinion, the European Copyright Society (ECS) puts on record its views on the issues raised by the Judgment of the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) in Case C-201/13, Deckmyn, which departs from the doctrine of strict interpretation of […]