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

Copyright and Secrecy Don’t Make for Good Trade Agreements

[Public Knowledge (Link)(CC-BY-SA] Today we filed comments about the proposed United States-European Union Free Trade Agreement – the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP). We told the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) that copyright is an uncomfortable fit for a trade agreement and should be kept out of the TTIP. If the […]

Obama Administration Releases Historic Open Data Rules to Enhance Government Efficiency and Fuel Economic Growth

[White House press release, May 9, 2013] The Obama Administration today took groundbreaking new steps to make information generated and stored by the Federal Government more open and accessible to innovators and the public, to fuel entrepreneurship and economic growth while increasing government transparency and efficiency. Today’s actions—including an Executive Order signed by the President […]

Incoming WTO Director General Urged to Make Access to Medicines a Priority

Least-developed countries fighting for TRIPS exemption extension [MSF Press Release] On the appointment of Roberto Azevedo as Director General of the World Trade Organization, international medical humanitarian organisation Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) has warned the WTO and incoming DG that access to medicines must become a priority. This includes allowing least-developed countries to remain exempt […]

Do Pharmaceutical Firms Invest More Heavily in Countries with Data Exclusivity?

[Forthcoming paper, Summer 2013, Currents International Trade Law Journal] Abstract: Countries may choose various methods of data protection in order to comply with the TRIPS Agreement. Policymakers should consider the effects of data exclusivity on prices and investment relative to other types of data protection. The data presented here suggest there is no relationship […]

Has the UK abolished copyright? Analysis of new orphan work legislation

[technollama.co.uk (Link)(CC-BY-NC-SA)] Has the UK abolished copyright law with the passing of orphan works legislation? I’ll answer quickly with Betteridge’s Law of Headlines: NO. However, if you listen to some copyright maximalist outlets, and particularly to the photograph lobby, you would believe that all copyright has been abolished as of now. Just look at some […]

USTR Announcements and Deadlines for Public Comments on the TPP and TTIP

Today the U.S. Trade Representative issued a Federal Register Notice seeking “comments from the public on all issues related to Japan’s participation in the TPP negotiations [and] comments on negotiations to address certain non-tariff measures of Japan that will be conducted bilaterally in parallel to the TPP negotiations and addressed by the conclusion of the […]