There is a growing feeling that more can be done to use technology - particularly the Internet - to provide greater access to knowledge. Coalitions of groups including librarians, civil liberties groups, health care givers, consumer groups, free and open source software groups, creative commoners, and other diverse interests are working together to increase awareness of the growing Access to Knowledge (A2K) campaign.
The A2K@IGF Dynamic Coalition is concerned about the impact of unbalanced intellectual property rights on access to knowledge and freedom of expression. A2K@IGF is a loosely-based and open coalition that grew out the United Nations Internet Governance Forum (IGF) workshop in Athens.
Workshop at the 2007 Internet Governance Forum (IGF) in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil sponsored by the A2K@IGF Dynamic Coalition.
Yale Information Society ProjectA2K3 Conference (8-10 Sept. 2008) in Geneva this year.
Yale Information Society ProjectA2K2 Conference (27-29 April 2007) and accompanying A2K2 wiki with presentations and more information. See slides from IP Justice Executive Director Robin Gross on "The Law of Search Engines" panel at Yale Law School.
Yale Information Society ProjectA2K Conference (21-23 April 2006) and accompanying A2K wiki with presentations and more information. See slides from IP Justice Executive Director Robin Gross on "DRM and Globalization" panel at Yale Law School.
In August 2004, Argentina and Brazil proposed WIPO create a "Development Agenda" that included a proposal for a treaty on access to knowledge and technology. In 2005 a number of NGOs, academic experts, scientists, businesses and governments discussed features of such a treaty, and the 14 member Group of the Friends of Development (FoD) asked WIPO to consider possible elements of an A2K Treaty. Its objective is to “protect and enhance access to knowledge, and to facilitate the transfer of technology to developing countries.” In July 2005 over 138 public-interest NGO’s from all over the world signed a joint statement supporting the Group of Friends of Development proposal for a "Development Agenda" at WIPO. For more information, see IP Justice’s "Development Agenda" pages.
14 Jul, 2008: WIPO Development Agenda committee deliberations on norm-setting, open source and creative commons (KEI) "The WIPO Committee on Development and Intellectual Property (CDIP) had rich discussions on Thursday afternoon (July 10, 2008) on norm-setting, open source and creative commons as they related to recommendations 22 and 23 of the Development Agenda. Recommendation 22 states: WIPO’s norm-setting activities should be supportive of the development goals agreed within the UN system, including those contained ...
14 Jul, 2008: WIPO Enriched by In-Depth Discussion of Public Domain (KEI) "With respect to the public domain, Richard Owens (WIPO Secretariat) noted that there is a fundamental question of definition that frames the policy debate on this issue. The classical definition of the public domain (in the copyright context) is “what is not protected by copyright, i.e. rights that have expired, works that have not been deemed worthy of protection, and ...
12 Jul, 2008: WIPO Development Committee Ends First Year On Mostly Agreeable Note (IP-Watch) "While the 7 to 11 July meeting of the Committee on Development and IP (CDIP) did not make any profound changes in the operations of WIPO yet, discussions revealed some of the areas where change may be coming. And while there were moments of tension, the overall spirit of the meeting appeared more agreeable than meetings of the past years. ...
9 Jul, 2008: EFF Statement at WIPO Development Agenda Meeting in Geneva "We support the call for WIPO to initiate discussions on how to facilitate access to knowledge and technology for developing countries and LDCs to foster creativity and innovation, and to facilitate IP-related aspects of ICT for growth and economic, social
and cultural development. It is essential that national and international copyright and patent laws provide an environment that is ...
9 Jul, 2008: G8 Declaration on the World Economy Read Text of GB Declaration on a World Economy and G8's Pledge to Increase Intellectual Property Rights and International Enforcement and to Deputize Customs Agents to Search and Seize Laptops, iPods, and PDA's of Unsuspected Citizens in Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA)
8 Jul, 2008: Development Agenda discussions focus on costing of consultants and Business Analysts (KEI) The second session of the the WIPO Committee on Development and Intellectual Property (CDIP) is meeting this week in Geneva (July 7-11, 2008). The first meeting of this development committee (March 2008) examined Cluster A (Technical Assistance and Capacity Building) of the 45 approved Development Agenda recommendations. ...
7 Jul, 2008: Intellectual Property Regime Stifles Science and Innovation, Nobel Laureates Say (IP-Watch) The basic framework of the intellectual property (IP) regime aims to “close down access to knowledge” rather than allowing its dissemination, Professor Joseph Stiglitz said at a 5 July lecture on “Who Owns Science?” Stiglitz, a 2001 Nobel Laureate in Economics, and Professor John Sulston, a 2002 Nobel Laureate in Physiology/Medicine, launched Manchester University’s new Institute for Science, Ethics and ...
30 Jun, 2008: [no title] The issue of IPRs in technical standards is increasingly seen to be contentious since they at times lead to anticompetitive situations affecting markets and international trade. While standards are adopted internationally and nationally by different standard setting organisations, they are implemented cross border. This has provoked a great deal of serious thought and syllogism over anticompetitive effects created due to ...
16 Jun, 2008: Civil Society & Organized Labour Seoul Declaration (OECD Ministerial in Korea) Framework for the Future of the Internet Economy. Freedom of Expression. Protection of Privacy and Transparency. Consumer Protection. Promotion of Access to Knowledge. Internet Governance. Promotion of Open Standards. Balanced Intellectual Property Policies. Internet Governance. ...
