"Mémoire présenté à la Faculté des études supérieures en vue de l'obtention du grade de maîtrise en droit, option recherche" / In the past decade, we have seen a resurgence of patent pools. These pools have emerged in our high-tech world to overcome a number of transaction costs involved in assembling patents necessary for the creation of new technologies. While patent pools can be pro-competitive; they can also present a number of anti-competitive features, such as sheltering collusion and eliminating competition between rival firms. This has been said to explain the enormous swings in the analytical approach of enforcement agencies with respect to patent pools. The introduction of the Antitrust Guidelines for the Licensing of Intellectual Property by American competition authorities marked an important shift in patent pool enforcement, reflecting the view that intellectual property and competition law are actually complementary, both seeking to enhance innovation as well as competition. Based on these Guidelines, enforcement agencies' identified potential problems and have offered a number of guiding principles and recommendations - in the form of Business Review Letters - to help pooling parties avoid running afoul of competition law. A review of some of these guidelines reveals that following them indiscriminately, without regard to the particular circumstances, can in fact have a negative impact on innovation and industry. Four areas where a clarification and refinement of policy are necessary are highlighted; namely, the essentiality doctrine, pool, independent licensing and grantback clauses. We maintain that guidance from the competition authorities is too rigid, and that a more carefully tailored approach is necessary to achieve an optimal outcome in both competition and innovation. / Au cours de la dernière décennie, nous observons une renaissance de l'institution des communautés de brevets (patent pools), constitués pour surmonter les coûts afférents a la réunion des brevets nécessaires pour la création des nouvelles technologies. Bien que ces communautés de brevets en général favorisent la concurrence, elles peuvent aussi avoir des effets anti-concurrentiels, entre autre, en permettant la collusion et l'élimination de la concurrence entre compagnies rivales. On a dit que ceci explique les étonnantes oscillations dans l'approche analytique qu'ont adoptée les organismes d'application à l'égard des communautés de brevets. L'introduction des Antitrust Guidelines for the Licensing of Intellectual Property par les autorités de la concurrence américaines marque un point tournant dans l'analyse des communautés de brevets, reflétant le fait que les lois de la propriété intellectuelle et celles de la concurrence sont, en réalité, complémentaires en ce qu'elles tendent toutes les deux à améliorer l'innovation et la concurrence. Se basant sur ces lignes directrices, les agences ont identifié les problèmes potentieis et ont offert un certain nombre de directives et de recommandations sous forme de lettres de revue (Business Review Letters) pour aider ceux qui entendent constituer des communautés de brevets à éviter d'enfreindre la Loi. Toutefois, une révision de certaines de ces lignes directrices démontre que, suivies d'une façon inconsiderées, sans égard aux circonstances particulières, elles peuvent avoir un impact négatif sur l'innovation et l'industrie. Quatre sections ont été mises en évidence où les règles doivent être clarifiées et nuancées, à savoir la doctrine de l'essentialité, les droits d'exclusivité, les services indépendants délivrant les licences et les clauses de rétrocession. Nous soutenons que les règles adoptées par les autorités de la concurrence sont trop rigides et qu'une approche plus nuancée est nécessaire pour atteindre un résultat optimal, à la fois pour la concurrence et pour l'innovation.

The aim of this work is to provide fundamental information about trademarks and their legal regulation. This topic, very interesting nowadays, also have a potention of great importance in a close future. Following this, trademarks are very dynamically developing institute.

L'impressionnante augmentation du nombre de dépôts de brevets, l'arrivée de nouvelles technologies mais également les nombreuses contestations du système des brevets invitent à se pencher sur la façon dont la notion de brevetabilité a su faire face à l'évolution des techniques et des pratiques. La présente étude propose d'analyser l'évolution contemporaine de la notion de brevetabilité en observant d'abord l'élargissement du domaine de la brevetabilité, avant de s'intéresser à l'assouplissement des conditions de brevetabilité. Les vecteurs de cette évolution vers une plus grande protection sont la lacune législative en matière de définition de l'invention et le recul successif des exclusions à la brevetabilité. Il ressort en outre de l'étude que le critère d'application industrielle doit être vu comme participant de la nature de l'invention, et non comme une condition de brevetabilité. Il apparaît également qu'en réaction à la complexité des nouvelles technologies et à la pression des acteurs économiques, les conditions de nouveauté et d'activité inventive se voient particulièrement assouplies. L'étude conclut a un abaissement du seuil de brevetabilité et à la prolifération de brevets de mauvaises qualité ayant un impact négatif sur l'innovation. / The impressive increase of patent applications, the advent of new technologies but also the numerous challenges that the patent system has to face invite to look at the way the notion of patentability copes with the evolution of art and practices. The present study analyses the evolution of the notion of patentability by observing at first the widening of patentability field, before looking at the softening.of patentability criteria. The means of this evolution toward a wider protection are the absence of any legal definition of invention and the successive backward movement of patentability exclusions. It is shown that industrial application must be seen as part of the ivention definition and not as a criterion. It also appears that in reaction to the complexification of technologies and the pressure of economic actors, novelty and non-obviousness criteria have been largely softened. The conclusion of the study is that the decrease of the patentability threshold and the increase of bad quality patents have a negative impact on innovation.

Magister Legum - LLM / Access to medicines is an essential component of the basic human right to health and a key determinant of the importance attached to the health care system of a country. It essentially entails the availability and acceptability of the essential medicines on the market and the ability of patients to afford such medicines when needed. Globally, countries face access to medicine challenges partly because of patents which undoubtedly accounts for excessive pricing of medicine. As such, efforts have been made to ensure the accessibility of medicines through the Trade-Related Aspect of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) flexibilities of the World Trade Organisation (WTO). Beyond these interventions, it is incumbent on Members of the WTO to domesticate the flexibilities of the TRIPS Agreement before their utilisation because by their very nature, they cannot be self-executed. With an estimated population of 29.6 million, about 310 000 people in Ghana are living with HIV. The country’s health facilities record 40 per cent of outpatient visits each year and about 14 550 per 100 000 of the population are infected with tuberculosis with cancer on the rise. These diseases require medicines which are mostly patented yet Ghana has access to medicine problems despite the existence of a national health insurance system. Ghana has however not fully incorporated the TRIPS flexibilities in its national legislations and therefore unable to fully utilise the flexibilities as an option to access essential medicines. Questions therefore remain as to why and how Ghana can utilise the flexibilities to improve access to medicines. Based on an examination of the WTO’s patent system and legislations of Ghana, this mini- thesis contends that, the extent of incorporation of the flexibilities are inadequate due to the existence of lacunas in the Ghanaian legislations. Furthermore, a comparative assessment with South Africa supports an understanding that conditions are not ripe for full utilisation of all the flexibilities. It further argues that the utilisation of the TRIPS flexibilities by Ghana has been rendered ineffective due to administrative, political, economic and social challenges which adversely affects the full utilisation of the flexibilities incorporated and those yet to be incorporated. It is therefore important that Ghana adopts holistic approaches taking into consideration best practices if the TRIPS flexibilities must be effectively utilised. This mini-thesis concludes that, the TRIPS flexibilities are necessary for accessing essential medicines in Ghana to promote the right to health and that a review of Ghana’s current legislations to fully incorporate the TRIPS flexibilities and addressing other non-legal challenges are the required linchpin for effective utilisation of the TRIPS flexibilities.

The aim of this thesis is to introduce fashion law as a cross-cutting legal branch which concerns many legal branches. In this work, the author focuses mainly on the regulation of the intellectual property law, which is absolutely crucial given the fact that the products of the fashion industry are the results of artistic creation. The introduction of the thesis is devoted to the history of the fashion law in the world and in the Czech Republic. The merit for the development and expansion of fashion law into awareness in Czech Republic belongs to The Czech Fashion Law Association. Further attention is focused on the design, its detailed conceptual and legal specification and familiarization with its types. Further on, the thesis deals with copyright protection of the copyright work. Copyright protection can be applied due to uniqueness and artistical value of the pieces. Particularly we speak about works of applied art, which are characterised by meeting the requirements of the daily needs except aesthetics impression. Industrial design protection is suitable for example for the protection of textile designs or the general original looks of products that fashion brands need to protect. The thesis is focusing on conditions, which need to be fulfilled for industrial design registration. It also...

Thesis (M. Comm,)--University of the Witwatersrand, Faculty of Commerce, 2001. / Electronic commerce is a new technology, which is growing rapidly and has the ability to create a truly global digital economy. The extraordinary growth of the internet in the last few years has led to the birth of a world without borders, a place where free communication, a competitive market and extensive comparison shopping are a matter of course. This apparent lack of geography in cyberspace has raised complex problems regarding government tax policy. The rapid rise in sales over the internet and the fact that most internet buyers pay no income tax on transactions has ignited a considerable debate over taxes and the internet. The nature of the internet and the globalisation of the world economy mean that developments in e-commerce create legal problems concerning security of transactions and legal jurisdiction of transactions. There is a general concern that e-commerce provides taxpayers with the ability to move transactions outside a country's jurisdiction and thus avoid paying tax in that taxing jurisdiction. The advent of ecommerce has also given dishonest taxpayers the ability to structure their affairs to reduce or avoid paying tax in their jurisdictions. Rules written specifically to address the unique characteristics of electronic commerce are few and must be creatively adapted to the unique needs of e-commerce. As the volume of e-commerce increases, however, so will the number of rules. Many government committees and commissions devoted wholly or partly to make proposals and write the rules for e-commerce, exist throughout the world. In the United States the highest profile commission is the Advisory Commission on Electronic Commerce. This commission has a mandate to recommend far-reaching changes to the taxation of electronic commerce, especially in the areas of sales and value-added tax ('Vat') and cross-border taxation. Research conducted by Austan Goolsbee has shown that applying the conventional tax policy to the internet commerce will reduce the number of buyers on the internet by up to 24 percent. Various countries are currently formulating their respective regulatory policies in an attempt to find solutions to problems posed by e-commerce.

It is undeniable that internet nowadays is part of our life and community. Internet opens door for expression of ideas and opinions which can both be given and taken freely. Moreover, with the rise of the new internet model, Web 2.0, the platform becomes wider and more interactive which has an effect on the copyright aspect all over the world. User-generated content was soon born as a result of Web 2.0 and caused unsolvable legal issues in the copyright regime due to its transformative nature which acts in contrary to the exclusive right of the author.          This thesis paper seeks the best solutions for the complicated nature of user-generated content in online platform which has been causing legal tension in copyright law for quite some time. The paper will focus mainly in the scope of EU copyright law as well as Thai copyright law. The Canadian new specific exception for user-generated content and its semi-open “fair dealing” exception will be discussed as a possible approach to the solution. Moreover, Human rights aspect in scope of freedom of expression will be analyzed in order to find the balance between the copyright and human rights in the most effective way to serve the core purpose of copyright law.

A tecnologia digital cria espaços diferenciados para a informação e coloca a Ciência da Informação frente a novas questões. O objetivo deste estudo exploratório e descritivo é abordar questões sobre o papel dos blogs, a influência da blogosfera na conformação das trocas de informações, relacionando novos formatos culturais e o estatuto do autor na blogosfera, assim como as questões de visibilidade e legitimidade que permeiam as relações mediadas pelas tecnologias de informação e comunicação. Toma-se como ponto de partida o estudo de caso da campanha Usura não!, criada em 2007, que incentivava o uso do link como uma netiqueta para blogs. Buscou-se acompanhar os desdobramentos da campanha e as proposições de seus participantes, formulando questões e elencando referenciais teóricos capazes de explicar tais manifestações e as possibilidades de encontro com os interesses da Ciência da Informação. Estabelece-se uma relação entre as dinâmicas presentes na blogosfera e as teorias de campo e habitus de Pierre Bourdieu, indicando as correlações da campanha na incorporação do habitus para mudar a situação dos agentes dentro do campo da blogosfera de entretenimento brasileira. Estas reflexões remetem a questões como a legitimação e a apropriação da informação por parte dos atores (navegadores/usuários), trazendo subsídios para se refletir acerca dos processos de circulação da informação na internet. / Digital technology creates differentiated spaces for information, and puts the \"Information Science\" in the face of new issues. The aim of this exploratory and descriptive study is to address questions about the role of blogs and the blogosphere\'s influence in the configuration of information exchange, linking new formats and cultural status of the author in the blogosphere, as well as issues of visibility and legitimacy that permeate the relations mediated by information technology and communication. Take as a starting point of this case study the campaign \"Usura não!\", created in 2007, which encouraged the use of the link as a blogging netiquette. We tried to follow the developments of the campaign and the propositions of the participants, asking questions and selecting theoretical references able to explain these events and the possibilities of meeting the interests of the Information Science. Is established a link between dynamics present in blogosphere, and theories of field and habitus of Pierre Bourdieu, indicating the correlation of the campaign in the incorporation of habitus to change the situation of workers in the field of entertainment Brazilian blogosphere. These considerations refer issues such as legitimacy and appropriation of information by the actors (browsers/users), providing subsidies to reflect upon the process of circulating information in the Internet.

Esta dissertação tem por escopo estudar a interface do Acordo TRIPS com o a Convenção sobre Diversidade Biológica, sob a perspectiva dos países em desenvolvimento. Para tanto, resgata a construção epistemológica Ocidental do conhecimento, direito, propriedade intelectual e desenvolvimento. Esta base teórica constituída é questionada pela CDB, que apresenta direitos relativos ao acesso de recursos genéticos e / ou conhecimento tradicional que subvertem a ordem estabelecida de geração do conhecimento e acumulação econômica. Tal subversão é parte integrante de movimento maior que questiona o próprio modelo de desenvolvimento e a relação Norte e Sul. Esta pesquisa contextualiza a estruturação legal e organizacional do tema e revisa as contribuições de autores que estudam este, sistematizando-as. Com este arcabouço, ela levanta hipóteses e reflete sobre as respostas destas, identificando paradoxos, compatibilidades e desafios. Apresenta (ndo) se, por fim, uma análise da governança institucional deste tema, através de uma nova configuração cognitiva e legal do mesmo. / This MA dissertation aims at studying the interface of the \'TRIPS Agreement\' with the \'Convention on the Biological Diversity\', under the view of the developing countries. As such, it ransoms the epistemologic building of the Ocidental knowledge, as well as the rights, intelectual property and development. This theoretical basis is questioned by \'CDB\', which presents rights related to the access of genetic resourses/ and the traditional knwledge, which subvert the established order of knowledge generation and economic accumulation. Such subvertion is part of a larger movement that questions its own development model and the North/ South relation. This research contextualizes the legal orgazing structuralization of the theme and revises the contributions of authors that study it, systematizing them. With this backbone, it rises hypotheses and thinks of these hypotheses, identifying paradoxes, compatibilities and challenges. It finally presents an analysis of the institutional governing of this theme, via a new cognitive and legal configuration of the same.

Qual é a internet que queremos? Para o Direito essa pergunta oferece um enorme desafio. Com a expansão comercial da rede, muitos interesses foram afetados e demandam conformação no ambiente digital. Um novo comportamento social emerge, com vistas à produção não mercadológica, baseada na troca e no compartilhamento de arquivos e informações, que se torna interessante para o desenvolvimento econômico e para o surgimento de novas oportunidades de inserção e prosperidade social. Questiona-se se os conceitos e as técnicas jurídicas desenvolvidas para descrever, analisar e regular a dinâmica da economia industrial são aplicáveis ao espaço cibernético ou se as novas tecnologias da informação propiciam inovações e comportamentos que exigem novos conceitos e definições que se moldem à Sociedade da Informação. Os controladores da infraestrutura de conexão e as grandes indústrias de entretenimento demonstram interesse na inspeção do fluxo de dados transmitido pela rede, bem como na restrição de uso e de acesso a conteúdos por dispositivos digitais conectados à internet e transmitidos via redes de compartilhamento de arquivos (redes p2p). Seus argumentos se fundamentam tanto na questão da abertura de modelos econômicos mais rentáveis e necessários à expansão da largura de banda, em resposta à demanda infinitamente crescente por internet de qualidade, quanto na fiscalização e impedimento da troca e do acesso a conteúdos protegidos por direito de propriedade intelectual. O presente trabalho vem demonstrar como as restrições impostas aos usuários poderiam impactar o ambiente competitivo e inovador criado na internet. O Marco Civil da Internet é formulado sobre as novas diretrizes produtivas e vem para definir, diante de um debate aberto e uma construção compartilhada com a sociedade brasileira, os possíveis caminhos a serem perseguidos com a regulação da internet. Os contornos jurídicos que resultarão da legislação a ser aprovada dependerão do posicionamento do Estado em face das demandas apresentadas, em alinhamento com o projeto desenvolvimentista insculpido no art. 3º da Constituição Federal. / Which internet do we want? From the aspect of the Law, this question poses a great challenge. With the commercial expansion of the web, many interests were affected by it, and these interests demand conformity in the digital environment. A new social behavior emerges, not aiming at a non-commercial aspect, but based on exchanging and sharing files and information, which is interesting for the development of the economy and for new opportunities of social insertion and prosperity. What is in question is if the legal concepts and techniques developed to describe, analyze and regulate the industrial economic dynamics are applicable to cyberspace, or if the new technologies of information provide enough innovation and behaviors that demand new concepts and definitions that mold them into the new Information Society. The controllers of connection infrastructure and the big entertainment industries show interest in the inspection of data flow transmitted on the web, as well as the restriction of content use and access through digital devices connected to the internet and transmitted through file sharing networks (p2p networks). Their arguments are based on two ideas: the opening of more profitable and necessary economic models, needed for the expansion of broadband width connection, answering the escalating demand for quality provision of internet use; and the supervision and stoppage of sharing and accessing content that is protected by intellectual property right. Under both ideas stated above, the aim of this work is to show how the restrictions imposed on users could impact the competitive and innovative environment fostered on the internet. The Internet Bill, called Marco Civil da Internet in Brazil, is formulated on the new productive directives and comes to define, with an open debate and a shared construction with all Brazilian society, the possible ways to be followed in regards to the regulation of internet use. The legal framework that will result on the approval of this legislation will depend on the position of the State about the presented demands, in alignment with the development project registered in art. 3rd. of the Federal Constitution