SpicyIP Weekly Review (June 2013, Week 5)

In a historic development, the negotiators at the WIPO Diplomatic Conference at Marrakesh last week concluded the 'Treaty to Facilitate Access to Published Works by Visually Impaired Persons and Persons with Print Disabilities'. The draft text of the treaty is available here. Several civil society organizations who have relentlessly fought for the treaty since 2008 were in boundless joy with the news. The negotiations were intense and faced...

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SpicyIP Tidbit: Update on Om Shanti Om Copyright Dispute

We would like to thank our readers who brought to our notice certain updates with regard to the Om Shanti Om copyright case (here). As informed, the case has been restored as of June 18, 2013. The High Court order restoring the same is available here. Reportedly, the cause for delay in filing evidence and documents was due to certain personal difficulties Monga's lawyer was facing. The case has been placed for 'directions' on July 17, 2013....

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Guest Post: The legality of 'reverse payments' in the E.U.

The issue of reverse payments, appears to be a rather hot topic this year, with both the U.S. and the E.U. cracking down on this practice, where an innovator pharmaceutical company, which owns a patent, pays off a generic competitor to not enter the market. Last week we had a guest post by George Yu, on the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in the Acatavis case. Today we have for our readers a guest post by Gary Moss, a U.K. solicitor, specialising in...

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Internet Censorship: Is Blocking Porn Possible?

Reportedly in yet another order, the Department of Telecom (DoT) has ordered a few ISPs to block 39 websites. The list has not been disclosed; however mostly consists of file sharing websites- especially ones which allegedly facilitate sharing of pornographic content. The reasons for blocking have not been specified, keeping in trend with DoT’s previous orders lacking in transparency. The order merely says, "It has been decided to immediately block...

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Delhi High court grants ex-parte injunction order against Aprica Pharma

On 17th June, in a patent infringement suit initiated by Merck, the Delhi High Court passed an ex parte injunction order, preventing Aprica pharmaceuticals from launching generic versions of Januvia and Janumet. The high court order can be accessed here.Merck’s counsel argued that the drug (sitagliptin) has been patented in over 102 countries. Merck’s counsels also contended that the invention entailed huge investment and the sales of the medicine...

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Negotiating licenses between patent holders and generic producers: the Medicines Patent Pool

The Medicines Patent Pool (MPP), backed by the United Nations, is a mechanism that has been formed with the intention of increasing access to HIV medicines in the developing world by increasing their affordability. The MPP negotiates licenses between patent holders and generic producers to make and sell HIV medicines at affordable prices to those who need it. An analysis of the concept of patent pools can be found here and here.  The latest is the license negotiated by the MPP between the patent holder, Gilead Sciences and given to Shilpa...

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Om Shanti Om: Copyright Dispute

 Image from hereA suit for copyright infringement, filed by scriptwriter Ajay Monga, in relation to the blockbuster movie ‘Om Shanti Om’ was recently dismissed. For all orders in relation to Ajay Monga v Red Chilli Entertainment Ltd. see here. The plaintiff (Ajay Monga) alleged infringement of his copyright over the script ‘The Silent Movie’. He argued that upon completion of his script he had distributed it to various producers, including the...

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A quick look at Venus & PPL’s challenge to copyright amendments

As reported earlier, Venus Worldwide Entertainment Pvt. Ltd. and Phonographics Performance Limited (PPL) have jointly filed a writ petition challenging the constitutionality of Sections 31(1)(b), 31D and 33A(2) and their corresponding rules under the Copyright Rules, 2013. The petitioners initially filed this petition before the Supreme Court (W.P.(C) No. 122 of 2013), however, withdrew the challenge with leave to approach the High Court. The...

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Internet Censorship: Gagging Mouthshut.com

While Facebook and Youtube routinely get several requests to delete offensive content, Mouthshut.com recently has been at the receiving end of several legal actions for facilitating consumers to post negative reviews. Mouthshut is a popular site which provides consumers a platform to post their reviews of products and services. It was launched in 2000 and is regarded as a reliable source of information. In April, the Bombay High Court ordered Mouthshut...

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Part II: Pfizer's testimony leads the way as US pressure on India increases

Part I of this looked into some of the claims that Pfizer has made. This part looks into what that testimony has led to.170 Members of US Congress write to Obama criticizing India's IP regimeThe effects of Waldron's testimony, no doubt combined with other lobbying efforts, have led to 170 US Members of Congress writing to President Obama, urging him to ensure 'these issues are raised at the highest levels of the Indian Government and that they are...

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Part I: Pfizer's testimony leads the way as US pressure on India increases

Readers may remember our recent coverage of Pfizer's Chief IP Counsel, Roy Waldron's testimony before a hearing of the US House of Representatives and the heated exchange that followed between Waldron and the Indian Pharmaceutical Alliance (IPA) thereafter. Waldron's main allegations were that the Indian Pharmaceutical patent regime flouted international trade rules and abused the compulsory license system and recommended that the US government use...

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Agreement reached on Treaty for the Visually Impaired!

Some great news came out of Marrakesh last night as negotiators and civil society took to social media to celebrate consensus finally being reached on the Treaty for the Visually. KEI also put out a short clip of the reactions and congratulations going around just after the agreement was reached - available here. Mr Raghavender, Registrar of Copyrights and part of India's delegation, is at 2:15 and he notes that "it's a great day in the history of Copyright law today". Jamie Love of KEI's tweeted, "WIPO reaches historic agreement on treaty for...

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Guest Post: Kerala's Endosulfan Ban - The science that never got discussed

We have for our readers today, a post by an award-winning journalist, Priyanka Pulla who has previously blogged for us over here on Ayurvedic medicines. She was recently awarded the first prize in the Science and Innovation category of the RedInk Awards for Journalism, 2013 for this story on Flock Theory and the Synchronies of Nature, published in Open, over here. One of her more recent stories in Open Magazine, available over here, was on the Endosulfan...

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