Migrating the Roundup to the InfoJustice News List
[Mike Palmedo] Dear reader – The Infojustice Roundup began in 2011 when the ACTA debate was a major part of PIJIP’s focus. It has been circulated on PIJIP’s email lists with names that look backward to ACTA’s enforcement focus (“IP-Enforcement” and “IP-Enforce-Press”), though the Roundup’s focus has broadened. Since then, we have created other, overlapping email lists that correspond to events and new issues within the realm of public interest intellectual property. This week, we have consolidated these lists into a general InfoJustice News list which we will use for the Roundup and occasional other news items. We will keep our other lists for discussion. If you would like to opt-out of InfoJustice News please click the unsubscribe button at the bottom of this message, or email mpalmedo@american.edu.
South African Creators Form ReCreateZA to Advocate for Balanced Copyright Reform
[Tusi Fokane and Ben Cashdan] A new organization of South African creators has formed to press their views in favor of balanced copyright provisions in the ongoing amendment process. ReCreateZA (www.re-createza.org) represents a broad coalition of creatives, including “writers, filmmakers, photographers, educational content producers, software and video game developers, technology entrepreneurs, artists, poets, producers of accessible format materials and other South African creators.” Click here for more.
Commissioner Malmström’s Response to Civil Society Concerns Over the Third Country Report on the Protection of IPRs
[Thiru Balasubramaniam] On 16 April 2018, KEI Europe and 32 groups wrote a letter to the European Commission’s Trade Commissioner, Cecilia Malmström, expressing concerns over the Commission’s plans to create an EU Watch List. In the letter, we noted that although the European Union has publicly committed its commitment to support the right of third countries to use the public health safeguards of the WTO TRIPS Agreement, the “Third Country Report on the protection and enforcement of intellectual property rights in third countries” challenged these very safeguards by targeting third countries for enacting policies on: 1) strict patentability criteria (Argentina, Brazil, India, Indonesia, and Russia), 2) local working provisions (Ecuador and Indonesia), and 3) compulsory licensing (Ecuador,India and Ukraine). Click here for more.
Brazilian Ministry of Education Publishes OER Ordinance
[Iniciativa Educação Aberta] The Brazilian Ministry of Education (MEC) published an ordinance on the 16th of may, that determines that any educational resources paid for by the Ministry, which is to be used for basic education (K-12) should be open educational resources, giving permissions for anyone to “access, use, adapt and distribute at no cost”. It further emphasises the importance of open formats and standards whenever technically viable. Click here for more.
Mexican Senate Passes Changes to Copyright Law That Would Censor Content Online
[Timothy Vollmer] April 27, 2018: Digital rights organisations in Mexico are sounding the alarm after the Senate approved changes to the copyright law that would censor information online. The measures would allow for the preemptive removal of content without having to prove that a copyright infringement has actually taken place. Yesterday the Senate approved the modifications to the Federal Copyright Law, with 63 votes in favor, 11 against, and 23 abstentions. The Senate voted with little internal discussion, and without the knowledge of or input from civil society organisations or the public. Click here for more.
Fair or Free Use of Copyrighted Materials in Education and Research and the Limit of Such Use
[Muhammad Masum Billah and Saleh Albarashdi] The concept of fair use, fair dealing, or free use of copyrighted works for education and research is incorporated in copyright laws around the world. This is to strike a balance between the private interests of copyright holders and the public interests of students and researchers to use the copyrighted materials in furthering their knowledge. While fair and free use of copyrighted materials for the purpose of study and research is favored and permitted under copyright laws almost everywhere in the world, the limit of such use is not clearly defined in these laws. Click here for more.
Five Years After The Indian Supreme Court’s Novartis Verdict
[Patralekha Chatterjee] On 1 April 2013, in a packed room inside India’s Supreme Court, a magnificent building in Indo-British architectural style, two judges delivered a verdict that impacted the national and global conversation about patents and patients. India’s apex court delivered a 112-page landmark judgement which dismissed Swiss pharma giant Novartis AG’s appeal for a patent for its life-saving cancer drug marketed under brand name Glivec in most parts of the world. The Novartis case triggered a hugely polarising discourse around the world about a key feature of India’s patent regime. Click here for more on IP Watch.
