News Updates — November 1, 2007
Important IP Issues Discussed at 2007 WIPO General Assemblies
Several important intellectual property (IP) issues were discussed at
the 43rd session of the World Intellectual Property Office (WIPO) General
Assemblies (GA) held in Geneva from September 24 to October 3, 2007.
Mary Carman, CEO of the Canadian Intellectual Property Office (CIPO),
headed the Canadian Delegation for the first time. Among the important
outcomes of the GA was the adoption of the recommendations of the
Provisional Committee on Development Agenda (PCDA). The recommendations
include a set of 45 proposals, 19 of which were identified for immediate
implementation.
Member States also approved the creation of the new Committee on Development and
Intellectual Property which will monitor the implementation of the recommendations.
This outcome was hailed as a major achievement, placing the development issues at
the forefront of any future work plan at WIPO.
The GA also extended the mandate of the Intergovernmental Committee on Intellectual
Property and Genetic Resources, Traditional Knowledge and Folklore for another two years.
Canada looks forward to continuing to work with all Member States on the WIPO
Secretariat’s list of options to pursue substantive work on genetic
resources and within the areas of traditional knowledge and traditional
cultural expressions.
Some issues remain unresolved, including discussions on the WIPO Internal
Audit Report and WIPO’s biennium budget. According to the WIPO
Convention: "If the budget is not adopted before the beginning of
the new financial year, the budget shall be at the same level as the budget
of the previous year, in accordance with the financial regulations."
The General Assemblies allowed Heads of Intellectual Property Offices (IPOs)
to meet and discuss operational issues. Mary Carman seized the opportunity to
meet bilaterally with the Heads of IPOs from the United Kingdom, Japan, South
Korea, the United States and European Patent Office. Further, Mary Carman hosted
the Ariana luncheon which took place at the Canadian Mission in Geneva. Among
the guests were representatives from the IPOs of Australia, the European
Patent Office, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the
United States as well as representatives from the European Commission.
The discussion was mainly on performance measurements and benchmarking.
Overall, the luncheon was a success and all participants agreed to
follow up on these discussions.
For more information: http://www.wipo.int/portal/index.html.en
Annual IPIC Meeting Features Presentations from China, Japan and Korea
The Intellectual Property Offices (IPOs) of China, Japan and Korea provided useful
insights into how to file patents and trade-marks with their respective
countries at the 81st annual meeting of the Intellectual Property Institute
of Canada (IPIC) held in Vancouver during October 11-14.
The presentations were designed to assist agents in their dealings with
these increasingly active and expanding IPOs plus help them understand
how they operate and enforce IP rights in their jurisdictions at a time
of burgeoning global growth in this field.
Mary Carman, Commissioner of Patents, Registrar
of Trade-marks and CEO of the Canadian Intellectual Property Office (CIPO),
addressed a packed luncheon meeting and laid out CIPO's five-year strategic
plan and priorities, enterprise business renewal as well as ongoing service
delivery improvements.
"This meeting provided a fine forum for discussions with agents and
senior representatives of IP firms from across Canada. The professional
regard with which this annual meeting was held was reflected by the
pan-Canadian presence, the attendance of the President and Executive
Director of the American Intellectual Property Law Association, along
with the three major Pacific Rim nations", said Barney de Schneider,
CIPO's Assistant Commissioner of Patents.
Barney added: "I was very impressed with the high quality of every
presentation. As well, Mary held discussions with the IPIC Council.
CIPO appreciates the opportunity to network with IPIC members and strengthen
ties with this organization in pursuit of mutual IP goals."
|
