Declaration Calls For Changes To Intellectual Property Law, Equal Access To Knowledge
[Civil society project organized by IFLA] Over 50 organisations have signed The Hague Declaration on Knowledge Discovery in the Digital Age (www.thehaguedeclaration.com), which calls for immediate changes to intellectual property (IP) law and the removal of other barriers preventing widened and more equal access to data. Improved treatments for diseases, answers to global issues such as climate change and billions in government savings are among the potential benefits to be gained, if the principles outlined in the Declaration are adopted by governments, businesses and society. The Declaration asserts that copyright was never designed to regulate the sharing of facts, data and ideas ‒ nor should it. Click here for more.
Sen. Sanders Letter Requesting Compulsory License on Sovaldi Patents to Treat Veterans With Hepatitis C
[Sen. Bernie Sanders] I am writing to urge you to use your authority as Secretary of Veterans Affairs to break the patents on Hepatitis C medications for the treatment of veterans suffering with the disease. Last December, as Chairman of the Senate Committee on Veterans’ Affairs, I held a hearing about the high price of Hepatitis C drugs and the impact of those high prices on access to treatment for veterans. At the time, I raised concerns that the price of these new Hepatitis C drugs, specifically Sovaldi, which is manufactured by Gilead Sciences, even when discounted, would preclude veterans from accessing these life-changing drugs. Click here for more.
Firm Performance in Countries With & Without Open Copyright Exceptions
[Mike Palmedo] This post presents preliminary data showing that firms in industries sensitive to copyright can succeed in countries with fair use. It is an early product of an interdisciplinary project at American University, in which PIJIP is working with economics professor Walter Park to study how country’s copyright exceptions effect economic outcomes. It is part of American University’s larger role coordinating the Global Network on Copyright User Rights. The research supports and expands on other recent research attempting to measure the value of fair use abroad. Click here for more.
Senate and House Endorse Balanced IP in Reports on Fast Track
[Sean Flynn] The Senate and House Reports on the Trade Promotion Authority bills working through Congress include important, albeit limited, steps toward endorsing balanced intellectual property norms in trade policy. The Senate report, released today, states: “The Committee has updated section (5)(A)(ii) to emphasize the critical importance of including in U.S. trade agreements IP provisions that facilitate legitimate digital trade. In particular, this section reflects the view of the Committee that U.S. trade agreements should contain copyright provisions that provide adequate and effective protection for U.S. right holders as well as foster an appropriate balance in copyright systems, inter alia by means of limitations and exceptions consistent with the internationally recognized 3-step test.” Click here for more.
¿Son las leyes de derecho de autor esenciales para la creatividad?
[Vladimir Garay] Hace algunas semanas atrás se celebró el Día mundial de la propiedad intelectual. Un par de días antes era el Día internacional del libro y los derechos de autor, que por alguna razón se celebran juntos, aunque no lo parezca: descontando el título, no existe ninguna mención al derecho de autor en el mensaje de Irina Bokova, directora general de Unesco, organización que promueve el festejo. Click here for more on derechosdigitales.org.
Online Copyright Enforcement, Consumer Behavior, and Market Structure
[Luis Aguiar, Jörg Claussen, Christian Peukert] Abstract: Taking down copyright-infringing websites is a way to reduce consumption of pirated media content and increase licensed consumption. We analyze the consequences of the shutdown of the most popular German video streaming website – kino.to – in June 2011. Using individual-level clickstream data, we find that the shutdown led to significant but short-lived declines in piracy levels. The existence of alternative sources of unlicensed consumption, coupled with the rapid emergence of new platforms, led the streaming piracy market to quickly recover from the intervention and to limited substitution into licensed consumption. Click here for more.
