Electronic Information for Libraries’ Draft Law on Copyright Revised and Updated
[EIFL] After five years, it was time to update the 2009 EIFL Draft Law on Copyright in the light of legislative developments, current thinking on copyright policy, and library services enabled by new technologies. As a result, we have amended some of the exceptions and limitations, while introducing new provisions. We have also refreshed the layout and design of the document. The EIFL Draft Law on Copyright including Model Exceptions and Limitations for Libraries and their Users (2014) is a practical guide to assist librarians, as well as their legal advisors and policy-makers, when national laws are being updated. It is designed to support access to knowledge and the public interest mission of libraries. Click here for more.
CCUSA Statement Supporting Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation’s New Open Access Policy
[CCUSA] The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation has announced an Open Access Policy to grant “unrestricted access and reuse of all peer-reviewed published research funded, in whole or in part, by the foundation, including any underlying data sets.” Under the policy, “all publications shall be published under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 Generic License (CC-BY 4.0) or an equivalent license.” There will be a two year transition period during which publishers can apply a 12 month embargo on Gates Foundation-funded publications. Effective January 2017, the transition period ends, and all publications must be open. Click here for more.
The African Regional Intellectual Property Organization (ARIPO) Protocol on Patents: Implications for Access to Medicines
[Sangeeta Shashikant] Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) suffers from numerous communicable and non-communicable diseases, with significant socio-economic effects, and adversely impacting the development prospects of countries in sub-Saharan Africa. Many of these diseases are treatable but access to affordable medicines remains a huge challenge in the region. A particular obstacle to access to medicines is the high, prohibitive costs of medicines enabled by the existence of patents. Patents grant the right holder a monopoly on the patented pharmaceutical for at least 20 years from the date of filing of the patent application, thereby curtailing competition by giving the patent holder freedom to set prices, which in many instances is simply unaffordable to persons who need the medicines. Click here for more.
Updated WIPO Study on Copyright Limitations and Exceptions for Libraries and Archives
[Kenneth Crews] A study of copyright exceptions and limitations for libraries and archives, commissioned by the World Intellectual Property Organization and delivered in 2008, provided a foundation for the subsequent consideration and evaluation of the issues by delegates from the WIPO member states.[1] The original study was conducted by Dr. Kenneth D. Crews on behalf of WIPO, and he was again commissioned to be the principal investigator for the present 2014 report. This report offers a significant update and expansion of the 2008 study. First, the combined 2008 and 2014 studies offer analysis of the copyright laws from all but one of the WIPO member countries. Second, this 2014 project identifies countries that have revised their relevant statutes since completion of the 2008 report. These statutory revisions confirm an ongoing need for legal change and reveal specifically the relevant copyright issues on which lawmakers in diverse countries have taken legislative attention. Click here for more.
Solutions to Improve Access to Medicines and Biomedical Innovation Through EU Trade and R&D Policy
[Médecins Sans Frontières Access Campaign] The European Union’s (EU) free trade and research and development (R&D) policies promote excessive intellectual property (IP) protection. This approach jeopardises access to affordable, needed medicines and impedes needs-driven biomedical innovation. Médecins Sans Frontières Access Campaign and our partners at HAI Europe and Oxfam are offering policy-makers seven straight-forward solutions that could transform harmful trade and R&D policy. By taking these solutions on board, the EU could enhance medicines access and pharmaceutical innovation in the EU and around the world. Click here for more.
OpenCon2014 Videos Available Online
All of the presentations from OpenCon2014 are now available online. OpenCon 2014 was the student and early career researcher conference on Open Access, Open Education, and Open Data held November 15-17, 2014 in Washington, DC. It was organized by the Right to Research Coalition, SPARC (The Scholarly Publishing and Academic Resources Coalition), and an Organizing Committee of students and early career researchers from around the world, and hosted by CCUSA. Click here for the conference website. | Click here for the videos.
U.S. Copyright Alert System Security Could be Improved, Review Finds
[Ernesto] This week the Center for Copyright Information released a new external review of its evidence gathering procedures. Overall the six-strikes Copyright Alert System gets a positive evaluation. However, more can be done to prevent false positives and protect the collected evidence from internal threats such as rogue employees. Click here for more on TorrentFreak.com.
