WIPO CDIP 15: Statement of Brazil on evaluation of the Project on Open Collaborative Projects and IP-Based Models

On Tuesday, 21 April 2015, the 15th session of the World Intellectual Property Organization’s (WIPO) Committee on Development and Intellectual Property (CDIP) considered the Evaluation Report for the Project on Open Collaborative Projects and IP-Based Models (CDIP/15/3). This project on open collaborate development models is based on Recommendation 36 of the WIPO which states,

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The CA State Assembly Health Committee staff analysis of AB463; includes who supports and opposes

The California Assembly Health Committee has published an analysis of AB463, the Pharmaceutical Cost Transparency Act of 2015. The bill will be marked up by the committee on Tuesday (April 21). The analysis was written by Dharia McGrew. It recommends three amendments to the bill, and provides a discussion of the benefits of the required disclosures, with context, and describes the support and opposition. The staff report is attached, and below is a list of 33 groups supporting and 22 opposing the bill. Continue Reading

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KEI statement to WHO 20th Expert Committee on the Selection and Use of Essential Medicines

Knowledge Ecology International (KEI) will present the following statement on 20 April 2015 to the Open Session of the 20th Expert Committee on the Selection and Use of Essential Medicines.

Statement of Knowledge Ecology International: WHO 20th Expert Committee on the Selection and Use of Essential Medicines, with specific focus on expanding access to new cancer drugs, when available at affordable prices

20 April 2015

Dear members of the WHO Expert Committee and the WHO secretariat,

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State of California considers AB463, a bill to require disclosure of drug development costs, and more economic data

This is a bill that will see legislative action next week in California, and the bill has some momentum. This is the first time I have seen any government make an effort to have useful data on the economics drug drug development and pricing, and it provides a model that other governments may want to built upon.

A mark-up on the bill has been scheduled for Tuesday, April 21, 2015, in the Assembly Health Committee.

BILL NUMBER: AB 463
INTRODUCED BILL TEXT

INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Chiu

FEBRUARY 23, 2015

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Sony complains fundraiser: “smells a little bit like a Disney play regarding corp. tax reform”

This from the Wikileaks Sony Archive:

An email from Keith Weaver, the “Executive Vice President, Worldwide Government Affairs at Sony Pictures Entertainment, provide an illustration the practical art of doing “Government Affairs,” meeting “goals” for fundraisers, trying to avoid making “personal” contributions, and wondering if the donations were to much focused on another company’s purchase of policy” “smells a little bit like a Disney play regarding corp. tax reform”.

Jamie

From: Weaver, Keith
Sent: Tuesday, August 26, 2014 5:23 PM
To: Weil, Leah
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Sony referred to “WIPO treaty for blind as “stalking horse” to “denigrate the rights of copyright owners”

In the new Wikileaks archives of leaked Sony documents (Link here), there is a memo (https://wikileaks.org/sony/docs/05/docs/DECE/DECE%20CP1%20-%20ss.doc.pdf), which describes Sony Pictures Entertainment (SPE) concern over the proposed WIPO treaty for copyright exceptions for persons who are blind or have other disabilities. The memo, undated in the Wikileaks archives, but probably written in 2009, included the following passages:

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TRIPS Council (October 2014): India calls for de-linkage and innovation inducement prizes at WTO discussions on IP & innovation

In advance of the World Trade Organization’s October 2014 session of the TRIPS Council, the European Union, Switzerland and the United States made a written request to the TRIPS Council to discuss “Intellectual Property and Innovation: Promoting Awareness; Case Studies” under agenda item 12. This marked the 7th time that the United States tabled an item to the TRIPS Council relating to intellectual property or innovation.

In the context of these October 2014 discussions of Intellectual Property and Innovation, the Government of India delivered the following intervention asserting that,

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Twenty groups write Congress, no fast track without public access to trade agreement negotiating texts

Twenty groups, including KEI, have written Congress, asking the Congress to provide public access to draft trade agreement texts and U.S. proposals throughout negotiations, and to specific that only agreements developed through such processes should obtain any expedited congressional consideration.

Among other things, the groups said:

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