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

Philippine Senate passes copyright legislation: amends fair use provision, adds exception for visually impaired, expands the definition of infringement

Legislation to change the copyright law of the Philippines has passed the third reading in the Senate. The law was sponsored by Senator Manny Villar, who is quoted in the press saying that “It is high time that we genuinely adhere to the international principle of fair use to limit the use of copyrighted material […]

LDCs collectively request an indefinite extension of their TRIPS-compliance transition periods

Led by Haiti, least developed country Members of the WTO have on November 5 filed a so-called “properly motivated” request under Art. 66.1 of the TRIPS Agreement for a collective extension of the transition period within which they must become TRIPS compliant. [See, WTO IP/C/W/583] . The request specifically averts that LDCs have not developed […]

WTO Trade Policy Review of Israel covers new developments on fair use, data exclusivity and parallel importation

[Reposted from kieonline.org] The World Trade Organization (WTO) held its fourth review of Israel’s trade policies and practices on 30 October 2012 and 1 November 2012. The review is based upon a report by the WTO Secretariat (WT/TPR/S/272) and a report by Israel (WT/TPR/G/272). According to the WTO, the minutes of the meeting and the […]

Could Pirate Romney Win/Have Won?

With the election around the corner, polls tied, and a slow news week in the US, it’s time to ask the question that’s on everyone’s mind: could Mitt Romney win with some strategic repositioning on copyright policy? Could the answer be to embrace pirate Romney? Let’s explore. What do we know about Romney’s views on […]

Presidential Decree in Costa Rica Protects the Photocopying of Textbooks

Fernando Quirós reports in the Tico Times that President Chinchilla of Costa Rica has signed a decree to protect photocopying of textbooks. A new law was recently passed to bring the nation into compliance with the Central American Free Trade Agreement. Law 8,039 included criminal sanctions for IP crimes, as well as an exception for […]

Pakistan to Establish Intellectual Property Tribunals

Pakistan is almost set to establish specialized Intellectual Property Tribunals which would exercise exclusive jurisdiction on intellectual property cases (patents, copyright, trademark, designs, Integrated Circuits and selected sections of Pakistan Penal Code dealing with trademark and counterfeiting). It means that when these tribunals would become functional, all cases related to relevant sections of the Pakistan […]