During heated discussions on the topic of access to essential medicines at the 134th session of the World Health Organization's Executive Board, India delivered the following statement on Thursday, 23 January 2014 expressing solidarity with the Republic of South Africa in light of the Pharmagate exposé.

On 27 January 2014, Greece, on behalf of the European Union, delivered this opening statement at the 20th session of WIPO Standing Committee on the Law of Patents (SCP). The EU's priorities for WIPO's patent committee include quality of patents (including opposition systems), work sharing and confidentiality of communication between client and their patent advisors.

With respect to limitations and exceptions to patent rights, the EU said,

This is the English translation of the intervention delivered by the South Centre on Thursday, 23 January 2014 at the 134th session of the World Health Organization's Executive Board expressing solidarity with the Government of the Republic of South Africa following the Pharmagate exposé.

Thank you, Madam President, for giving us the floor.

Three NGOs, Medicus Mundi International, HAI and MSF, each read statements during the EB discussions on the CEWG demonstration projects. The statements were limited to 300 words, and NGOs were required to provide the text 24 hours before the agenda item, and obtain WHO approval of the content. KEI worked with HAI on its statement, and the Peoples Health Movement worked with MMI on its statement. The text of the HAI and MMI statements follow:

Health Action International (HAI) statement to EB 134 On agenda item 9.3, follow up to CEWG on financing and coordination

On Thursday, 23 January 2014, Malebona Precious Matsoso (Director General of the South African National Department of Health) delivered the the following intervention at the 134th session of the World Health Organization's Executive Board under agenda item 9.7 on Access to essential medicines in response to the recent Pharmagate imbroglio.

On Thursday, 23 January 2014, the South Centre delivered the following statement at the 134th session of the World Health Organization's Executive Board under agenda item 9.7, access to essential medicines, expressing solidarity with the Government of the Republic of South Africa following the Pharmagate exposé.

GRACIAS SENORA PRESIDENTA POR DARNOS LA PALABRA.

Boseley, Sarah. 17 January 2014. "South African pharma firms accused of planning to delay patents law reform." The Guardian. http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/jan/17/south-african-pharma-accuse...

De Wet, Phillip. 17 January 2014. "Motsoaledi: Big pharma's 'satanic' plot is genocide." Mail & Guardian. http://mg.co.za/article/2014-01-16-motsoaledi-big-pharmas-satanic-plot-i...

Bayer CEO Marijn Dekkers called the Nexavar compulsory license “essentially theft.”

[UPDATE: The latest blog and transcript of Bayer CEO Marijn Dekkers' full quote on the Indian compulsory license of Nexavar at the December Financial Times event is now available.]

Testimony of James Packard Love
Hearing on: The Scope of Copyright Protection
January 14, 2014
Subcommittee on Courts, Intellectual Property, and the Internet

My 10 page written statement is here: http://keionline.org/sites/default/files/JamesLove_Testimony.pdf

My 5 minute oral statement follows:

James Packard Love, Opening statement

Hearing on: The Scope of Copyright Protection
January 14, 2014
Subcommittee on Courts, Intellectual Property, and the Internet

The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) will host a "Conference on Open Innovation: Collaborative Projects and the Future of Knowledge" on 22-23 January 2014 at its headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland.

The origins of this conference on open collaborative development models is predicated upon Recommendation 36 of the WIPO Development Agenda which states:

Today Senators Bacus and Hatch introduced fast track legislation in the Senate. The words transparent or transparency appear 17 times in the 107 page bill, but only twice in connection with "Trade Institution Transparency."

The Licensing Executives Society International, Inc. (LESI) is convening its annual Global Technology Impact Forum (GTIF) at the headquarters of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) from 20 to 21 January 2014 in Geneva, Switzerland. Although this international forum is hosted in Room A at WIPO headquarters, this event (at the time of publication of this blog) does not appear on the calendar of WIPO events for January 2014.

In 2013, the USPTO issued 277,861 utility patents, a new record in terms of the numbers of patent grants, and an increase of 9.8 percent over 2012.*

Country of Assignment

Of the total, 126,574 (45.6 percent) were assigned to a US owner, a small increase in the percent held by US entities over 2012.

Below is the final version of the conclusions from SCCR 26 (followed at the end with a short KEI commentary).

Conclusions

Protection of Broadcasting Organizations