I'm very excited to announce the collaboration between IP Osgoode and the International Legal Partnership (ILP) that will see the placement of Research Fellows with the People's Patent Group (PPG) in Delhi, India. From June to August 2009, two Osgoode students-Nigel D'Souza and Jasdeep Singh-will work with the PPG on a variety of issues that intersect between Intellectual Property Law and Human Rights Law. Nigel and Jasdeep will be blogging about their research and travel in India, and I look forward to reading about their experiences here on IPilogue. In a way, doing so will allow me to reminisce about my time working with the PPG.

Last summer, I was fortunate enough to be granted an opportunity to be an ILP Research Fellow with the PPG. During my three months with the PPG, I was able to conduct legal research on two major intellectual property related issues that India, as a rapidly industrializing country, is facing: the state and transition of the country's generic manufacturing industry, and the introduction of agricultural biotechnology. In addition to economic, environmental and health concerns, these two issues also have a significant interrelationship with human rights.

As part of my research with the PPG, I wrote a chapter for a book that the organization was publishing on access to anti-retroviral (ARV) treatment in India. My chapter was based on India's generic manufacturing industry, which is facing a transition period of sorts with India's adoption of the Trade-Related Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPs) Agreement. Prior to the adoption of TRIPs, India's generic manufacturing industry -the largest in the world- was able to provide an adequate supply of ARV treatment to most of the developing world. Now, with the trade liberalization of IP rights, many of India's generic manufacturing companies cannot simply reverse engineer drugs, but must focus on finding new ways to compete, primarily through process-driven innovation. The issue facing India's generic manufacturing industry is finding a way to provide access to inexpensive treatment for people living with HIV/AIDS (PLHAs), while at the same finding a new role in a new global IP regime.

The other facet of my research focused on the introduction of agricultural biotechnology-most notably Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs)-into a primarily-agricultural country such as India. As more Indian states are allowing BT crops to be planted on their soil, the country must be prepared to deal with the effects of such crops, such as increased water consumption, and possible health and environmental risks. Traditional agricultural practices such as seed exchange are no longer possible, as Indian farmers increasingly must rely on the purchase of genetically modified seeds every season. In my research, I also examined how India is extremely rich and diverse in terms of "genetic wealth".  The country must find new ways to protect its genetic resources, Geographical Indications (GIs) and traditional/indigenous knowledge from the threat of bio-piracy.

My experience with the PPG was immensely rewarding on both a personal and professional level. In my role as a Project Director for ILP this year, I sought to renew our partnership with the PPG in the hopes that future Research Fellows could benefit from the same experience that I had.  I certainly hope that Nigel and Jasdeep can continue much of the work that we started last summer. I invite you all to read about their journey this summer.

For more information on the global legal education, research opportunities and international placements available through ILP, please visit:

The post The People's Patent Group: Generic Pharmaceuticals, Agricultural Biotechnology and International Human Rights appeared first on IPOsgoode.

The publishers’ use of the photos may fall under one of the enumerated grounds of fair dealing.  The newspapers could argue that their use of the photos is for the purposes of “news reporting” under Sec. 29.2 of the Copyright Act, provided that they sufficiently acknowledge the source of the photo.  The analysis would then move to the second prong – whether this dealing can be considered “fair.”  

Purpose

The purpose of this dealing was to relay a current event, even if it is in a commercial context.  However, one could also argue that the purpose of including a picture of the victim was to sell more newspapers.

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The publishing of the victim’s photos in major newspapers around the city ensured that multiple copies were made and widely distributed.  To recognize such a practice as an industry custom/practice would allow large publishers to freely use people’s photos without consent in future news stories.  

Amount

Fair dealing can be applied even if the whole work is copied, as is the case with photographs (Allen v. Toronto Star).  

Alternatives

Instead of taking the photos from Facebook without the owner’s consent, the newspapers could have waited for Toronto Police Services or the victim’s family to release pictures.  Even if there were no non-copyrighted works available as an alternative, the use of the victim’s photos was not reasonably necessary to achieve the “ultimate purpose” of news reporting.  The newspapers could have just as easily reported the story without the photo.  This is distinguished from the fact scenario in Allen, where the use of the photo in question was necessary for comparison.  The image contrast was the thrust of that article, while it was not the case here.  

Nature of the Work

While the victim’s pictures were not confidential in nature, they were also not meant to be as widely disseminated as they were.  This is exacerbated by the fact that the pictures were used without the consent of the victim’s family.  

Effect on the Work

While there was no market substitution here, the widespread distribution of these pictures has the potential to inflict considerable emotional anguish on the victim’s family and friends.  

It is evident that this practice does not meet the standards of fairness set out in CCH.  Protecting the rights of the user (the publishers of large newspapers) cannot come at the expense of a victim’s interest or the privacy concerns of the millions of people on Facebook.

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