Data on Chinese patent applications and grants suggests growing gap between political rhetoric and current realities

The GOP platform mentions China 15 times, including these passages:

Our serious trade disputes, especially China’s failure to enforce international standards for the protection of intellectual property and copyrights, as well as its manipulation of its currency, call for a firm response from a new Republican Administration. . .

Continue Reading

Update: Global Fund responds to Report on William Steiger

The Global Fund just sent an email, which says that “your website which inaccurately reports that Mr Steiger will run VPP.” Here is the Global Fund email:

From: Andrew Hurst
Date: June 20, 2012 5:36:49 PM GMT+02:00
To: Thirukumaran Balasubramaniam Subject: RE: Question on the Global Fund’s Voluntary Pooled Procurement?

Dear Thiru

Further to our conversation this week, here is our statement:

Continue Reading

WTO disputes- Intellectual property dimensions of the Boeing case (WT/DS353)

“Roma locuta causa finita est” (Rome has spoken, therefore the case has been decided) was the maxim employed by medieval jurists to describe the absolute irrevocability of papal judgements in canon law. Today, in modern international trade law, the World Trade Organization’s (WTO) Appellate Body fulfills a similar function as the international trading system’s “Supreme Court”. In the words of the WTO,

[t]he Appellate Body was established in 1995 under Article 17 of the Understanding on Rules and Procedures Governing the Settlement of Disputes (DSU). Continue Reading

The Johnson & Johnson Acuvue Compulsory License

In April of 2010, District Judge Timothy J. Corrigan (M.D Florida, Jacksonville division) declined to grant a permanent injunction following a finding that the Johnson & Johnson’s ACUVUE®OASYS contact lens product infringed patents owned by CIBA Vision Corporation, providing another example of, in effect, a judicial compulsory license following the 2006 eBay v. MercExchange case; the judge wrote:

Continue Reading

PhRMA Special 301 submission on Thailand

The following discusses the 2009 PhRMA submission for the USTR Special 301 list on Thailand. Thailand is one of three Asian countries (China, Philippines and Thailand) that were singled out by PhRMA for the harshest treatment. The submission on Thailand covers several topics, including these:

Continue Reading

Working Document Proposed by Barbados and Bolivia

https://www.keionline.org/misc-docs/b_b_igwg/working_document_barbados_bolivia.pdf April 2008 According to resolution WHA60.30 on Public Health, Innovation and Intellectual Property, the Director-General of the WHO is asked: (4) to encourage the development of proposals for health-needs driven research and development for discussion at the Intergovernmental Working… Continue Reading

KEI Letter to Thailand Prime Minister and Health Minister, regarding compulsory licensing decisions

His Excellency Mr. Samak Sundaravej Prime Minister Government House Nakornpratom Rd. Dusit, Bangkok Thailand 10300 His Excellency Mr. Chaiya Sasomsap Minister of Public Health Tiwanont Rd. Talad Kwan District Nontaburi Province 11000 Thailand March 4, 2008 Re: Thailand Compulsory Licenses… Continue Reading