Our recap of the past seven days starts on several joyous notes. Firstly, Barry’s back in the White House for another term as the IP-friendly leader of the free world. With the elections out of the way, Barry’s in-tray is already piling with several intellectual property-related issues affecting the US and which may very well impact policy and practice in the rest of the world.
This week also marked the launch of Creative Commons Kenya. A project that we at CIPIT believe will greatly impact how copyright works are shared and exploited particularly in the digital environment. We are once more grateful to be named as the Public Lead for Creative Commons Kenya alongside the National Council for Law Reporting (NCLR) which will be Legal Lead.
Moving right along, here are some of the major IP-related news items that caught our attention this past week:
– Strathmore University ranked top in East Africa in ICT [University World News]
– Creative Commons Comes to Kenya [The Star]
– “Sizing Up The “Ill-Conceived” PAIPO Draft Statute” [Stellenbosch Chair of IP]
– Out of Africa: PAIPO meeting in Congo this week [Patent Buff]
– Law School Dean and IP Scholar Nominated to Kenya’s Court of Appeal [IP Kenya]
– South Africa: Easy patents cost patients [Plus News]
– Kenya: Cease and Desist Letter in respect of PepsiCo and Seven-Up International Trademarks [IP Kenya]
Back story of Pepsi Cola Trademark story in Kenya here.
– Tanzania: State Not Ready for GMOs [TZ Daily News]
– Kenya: Create a distinct trademark worth protecting [Business Daily Africa]
– Megaupload sequel faces African setback [BBC]
– WIPO signs Tripartite Agreement to Brand Zanzibar Cloves [TZ Daily News]
– Patent Applications: Nonresidents in Kenya [Trading Economics]
– Nigeria: Piracy – Achebe Won’t Make Money From New Book [Vanguard]
– Gangster movie Kenya’s first Oscar contender [CNN]
– India Patent Office publishes guidelines for processing #patent applications relating to Traditional Knowledge and biological material [IP Office India]
– Why Apple’s ‘Rounded Corners’ iPad Patent Isn’t As Absurd As It Sounds [SFGate]
– Canada’s Supreme Court strips Viagra patent from Pfizer [Reuters]
– Wi-fi, dual-flush loos and eight more Australian inventions [BBC]
– With All Due Respect: The Patent System’s Not Broken [Wired]