A Civil Society Perspective on NETmundial 2014 Final Outcome Document
[Robin Gross] A few ‘big picture’ thoughts on the Netmundial meeting in Brazil this week and its final outcome document… the Internet governance principles of human rights, democracy, equality, openness, transparency, accountability, decentralization, rights to access, share, distribute information on the Internet, and the Internet as a global resource to be managed in the public interest are all supported in the final outcome document. These principles are all wonderful achievements for social justice and an important pivot point in the evolution of global governance principles and mechanisms. Civil society lost ground in the final moments on the specific wording over the most contentious issues, such as surveillance, copyright, permissionless innovation, intermediary protections, net neutrality, and separation of policy and operations in IANA, but the fact that these controversial issues were mentioned at all in the statement is a significant advancement (except for the ode to copyright). Click here for more.
Analysis of the ViiV/Medicines Patent Pool Dolutegravir Patent Licenses
[Brook Baker]This paper provides a detailed analysis of the effective geographical scope of the recently announced adult and pediatric between the Medicines Patent Pool and ViiV Healthcare covering dolutegravir. an important integrase inhibitor. In addition to providing a comprehensive analysis of the effective geographical scope of the licenses, taking into account both the formally licensed territory and territories where ViiV patent rights would not be violated by sales of dolutegravir, the paper also analyses other key aspects of the licensing agreement. Click here for more.
Opening up Education: Slovenia As a Model State
[Slovenia Ministry of Education, Science and Sport] The initiative “Opening Up Slovenia” was presented in the Grand Union Hotel in Ljubljana, Slovenia, on April 23, with the aim of making Slovenia a model state in the field of accessible and open educational resources. …Androulla Vassiliou, European Commissioner for Education, Culture, Multilingualism, and Youth [commented] “I am delighted that Slovenia has adopted a national strategy to promote open educational resources. This complements the Commission’s own ‘Opening Up Education’ initiative. Our shared objective is not to replace traditional textbooks or face-to-face teaching, but to make the most of the opportunities created by digitization and new technologies.” Click here for more.
Liability of Intermediaries in Argentina: Lack of Specific Legislation and Contradictory Decisions
[Daniela Schnidrig and Veronica Ferrari, Digital Rights LAC, Link (CC-BY)] Argentina has no specific regulations on liability of intermediaries. What does this mean? It means that in judgments involving an intermediary – i.e., an internet service provider, search engine, or platform[2]– judges may freely resort to whatever norms they deem applicable to the case when considering whether the intermediary is accountable or not. Click here for more.
Free Trade in Patented Goods: International Exhaustion for Patents
[Sarah Rajec] Abstract: Modern international trade law seeks to increase global welfare by lowering barriers to trade and encouraging international competition. This “free trade” approach, while originally applied to reduce tariffs on trade, has been extended to challenge non-tariff barriers, with modern trade agreements targeting telecommunication regulations, industrial and product safety standards, and intellectual property rules. Patent law, however, remains inconsistent with free-trade principles by allowing patent holders to subdivide the world market along national borders and to forbid trade in patented goods from one nation to another. Full abstract and article on SSRN.
