1. WTO to investigate U.S complaint against Chinese subsidies
Bloomberg Reports
The World Trade Organization agreed to probe a complaint by the
In March, the
Also today,
Recall spicyiposts
http://spicyipindia.blogspot.com/2007/09/living-in-glass-houses-and-throwing.html
http://spicyipindia.blogspot.com/2007/08/counterfeiting-claims-and-taming-dragon.html#links
2. Global Patent Fling to get a leg up
IT firms are likely to file international patents with the government planning to provide financial support up to 50% of the cost of a patent the department of Information technology (DIT) is creating a detailed road map to provide the incentive in consultation with the commerce ministry, the nodal agency for patent issues.
The move is expected to boost filing of international patents w3hich is minuscule compared to the number of applications filed domestically. Economic Times
3. Hybrid Embryo coming! Cybrid Harvest
U.K okays Human –Animal Combo for research to find Cure for diseases.
What this essentially means is an ending supply of stem cells for research to cure Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s.
How this will be done:
A myriad combination, researcher’s talk of using empty or de-nucleated cow or rabbit to be filled with adult DNA. These hybrids will be more than 90% human 1%animal.Times of India
This is expected to spark of a fresh round of debates on the patenting of human tissue /genetic engineering
The U.S courts and EPO have granted patents to genetic inventions, however the issue of patent ability is yet not settled.
An essential criteria for determining patentability of inventions and perhaps the most controversial in this area is the requirement that it is to be a product of human intervention.
Further viewed in the light of Article 27.2 of TRIPS members may exclude from patentability such inventions as in ‘necessary to protect public order or morality’
Bio-ethicists argue that biomed innovations of this kind violate the’ sanctity of humanity’.
In view of such debates, a sensible approach would be to differentiate the curative from the commercial and formulate policies to regulate biomed innovation..and yes…speed is of the essence given the rapid pace of advances in this area.
4. Apple cuts Iphone price unveils Ipods.
And some Apple-nomics to usher in the holiday season.
Apple slashed the price of the top Iphone by $200 to bolster holiday sales. The company also revamped its Ipod media player introducing Ipod Touch that incorporates the Iphone touch screen and the ability to download songs directly.
Beijing said there was “ample market access” in China for foreign media products and services.
A U.S. trade official Dan Hunter, declined to repeat all of Washington’s concerns but told the panel that he regretted the failure to reach a negotiated solution.
The Bush administration is facing pressure from Congress over the soaring total U.S. trade deficit and lost American manufacturing jobs, both of which they attribute in part to unfair trade practices by foreign countries. The overall U.S. trade deficit reached a record for the fifth consecutive year in 2006 at $765.3 billion. The U.S. imbalance with China grew to $232.5 billion, the highest ever with a single country.
The WTO is expected to make three rulings next year: on claims by the United States and the European Union that China maintains an illegal tax system to block imports of foreign-made auto parts; on a U.S. and Mexican complaint over Chinese industrial subsidies; and on claims by Washington that Beijing is effectively providing a safe haven for product piracy and counterfeiting through excessively high thresholds for criminal prosecution.
Lamy cancels China trip
The WTO director general, Pascal Lamy, has canceled a trip to China to hold discussions this week in Geneva on the Doha round of trade talks, trade officials said Tuesday, Reuters reported from Geneva.