1. ICT Policy سياسات تكنولوجيا المعلومات والاتصالات
Lecture (9)
Dr.Samah Mohammed

2. Intellectual Property
What is intellectual property?
Intellectual property (IP) is an intangible thing such as an idea or innovation that, in most parts of the world, you can own, similar to the way that you can own tangible things like a car or a land.

3. intangible thing
The intangible thing can be something that you have :-
written,
drawn,
designed,
Invented, or
spoken, and it can be something that you have created yourself or paid someone to create for you.

4. Intellectual property rights (IPRs)
IPRs emerged in the industrialized world as a means to mediate and control the circulation of knowledge, and as a means of balancing the conflicting rights of different groups involved in the generation and use of ideas of economic value.
IPRs are premised on concerns that the creators or authors of ideas should have a material right to a fair return for their effort and a moral right not to have their ideas misrepresented.

5. Cont…
ideas are not simply the product of individuals and corporations.
Society in general has a social right to use ideas for the benefit of the public good – especially if they are key to social and physical well being.

6. Rules for IP protection
The rules for IP protection, such as the scope of protection and the requirements for obtaining protection, are set out and enforced in laws and regulations of national governments.

7. What are the four distinct types of protection given to intangible property?
Patents (برأه الأختراع)
Trademarks (العلامات التجارية)
Copyright, (حقوق الطبع)
Trade secrets.(الأسرار التجارية)

8. International institutions that play a role in IP protection
There are a number of international treaties and agreements that aim to harmonise national IP laws across countries:-
The World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO)
Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS).
World Trade Organisation (WTO).

9. Brief History of WIPO Paris Union 1883 Berne Union 1886
International Bureau combined 1893
WIPO Convention 1967
The need for international protection of IP became evident when foreign exhibitors refused to attend the International Exhibition of Inventions in Vienna in 1873 because they were afraid their ideas would be stolen.
Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property, the first major international treaty designed to help the people of one country obtain protection in other countries for their intellectual creations in the form of industrial property rights. It entered into force in 1884 with 14 States, which set up an International Bureau to carry out administrative tasks, such as organizing meetings of the member States. Explain concept of territoriality
In the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works. The aim of this Convention was to help nationals of its member States obtain international protection of their right to control, and receive payment for, the use of their creative works such as: novels, short stories, poems, plays; songs, operas, musicals, sonatas; and drawings, paintings, sculptures, architectural works.
Like the Paris Convention, the Berne Convention set up an International Bureau to carry out administrative tasks. In 1893, these two small bureaux united to form the United International Bureaux for the Protection of Intellectual Property (BIRPI). Based in Berne, with a staff of 7, this small organization was the predecessor of WIPO. Following the entry into force of the Convention Establishing WIPO in 1967, WIPO became a specialized agency of the UN with a mandate to administer IP matters in 1974.
UN Specialized Agency 1974
184 Member States (as of end of October 2010)

10. Basic Facts about WIPO WIPO’s Mission:
To promote the protection of IP rights worldwide and extend the benefits of the international IP system to all member States
Status: An int’l intergovernmental organization
Member States: 184
Observers: 250 +
Staff: 950 from 101 countries
Treaties Administered: 24
Decisions by: GA, CC, WIPO Conference

11. WIPO
Effort to demystify IPR and make it more accessible and relevant to a broader group of people
IP no longer to be seen from solely a legal perspective but also its place in the society as a tool for economic growth
A means to an end, and not an end in itself.

12. WIPO’s Mandate
WIPO is dedicated to developing a balanced and accessible international intellectual property (IP) system, which rewards creativity, stimulates innovation and contributes to economic development while safeguarding the public interest.

13. Obstacles
Obstacles meet the IP system are:-
Limited awareness of the IP system and its relevance as a strategic tool
High costs (filing, translation, drafting, maintain)
Complexity of IP system
Delays in obtaining IP rights
Lack of expertise to make use of the IP system
Success rate in getting IP rights (patents) low
Inability to monitor and enforce