ICANN catch up news

Been lots of developments on this front recently. First thanks to the Register for this report that an "independent" ICANN, or at least one not linked with the US government, might really happen. The present MoU will be extended but the assumption appears to be that it will then expire and new arrangements, subject to much discussion in the run up to WSIS Tunis, would come into effect.

Would this solve problems or create new ones? What would be the actual status of any new body - a topical question given the revival of US competition concerns, particularly in the Senate, in respect of the relationship between ICANN and Verisign (thanks to Zdnet for this report: http://news.zdnet.com/2100-9588_22-6117771.html)

Corporate power, international relations, competition and basic questions like control of important aspects of the internet and opportunities for access to it: pretty fundamental questions really - and all these fields should properly be considered as part of the mix.

JIEL article

We are delighted to provide publicity for the recent article in the well respected Journal of International Economic Law by Rob Anderson and Hannu Wager, both members of our international expert network.

The title is: "Human Rights, Development and the WTO: The Cases of Intellectual Property and Competition Policy." Rob and Hannu hope to stimulate further debate in these fields: we would be most interested in any comments.

Note of Expert Meeting: Intellectual Property, Competition and Human Rights

On 23/4 March 2006 members of the Expert Network of the IP, Competition and Human Rights project held a very successful meeting. The group considered case studies, with a view to developing outcomes which were legally robust, but also practically achievable and desirable, from different perspectives.

A draft note of the discussions of the meeting can be found here, together with the texts of the case studies. We would welcome any comments you may have.

The plot thickens

Reactions to what could be termed the "iTunes" law continue. This piece provides details of apparent EC and US regulatory concern at the French legislation and envisaged activity. From the more legal perspective, Pinsent Masons, of Out-Law fame are conducting a survey on whether IP laws should be revised to include a general concept of interoperability through compulsory licensing on commercial terms.

We're very interested in this research. It takes a different approach to our own project but addresses similar questions of rights of IP owners and those seeking access to works, and the appropriate balance. Our focus is on (mainly) abuse of a dominant position by IP owners, the impact of human rights arguments, taken from a range of international, domestic, academic and policy sources, in interpreting IP legislation (includes its existing many internal restrictions) and key competition law principles. Pinsent Masons are exploring the more direct approach - a new limit on IP rights themselves in appropriate circumstances. A most interesting project - have your say here: http://www.out-law.com/page-7292

The world of music

The relationship between the market and law is often fraught - the competition element of our project being revealing in this regard. Particularly interesting at present is the question of interoperability, innovation, regulation and legislation - which is a long way of saying the Apple wars. There have been previous posts on the blog about the French legislation, and colleague Nicolas Jondet gave an excellent paper about this at the Edinburgh conference last week.

Most interesting, however, is that shortly after a law (not uncontroversial in itself, and there is also the small matter of EC competition law and free movement of goods) is finally passed, the market does indeed catch up; the linked article provides an excellent summary of the media story of the minute. EMusic enters Europe, there may be greater choice for consumers, even if the products are not interoperable: the iPod and iTunes might no longer be the main market player. Which may raise the question: is the goal protection of consumers or protection of competitors?

Computer Law World Conference and GikII

A huge pat on the back to Andres Guadamuz, Erick Iriarte Ahon, Lilian Edwards and all other organisers for the stimulating, challenging and enjoyable Computer Law World Conference and GikII workshop. Edinburgh provided a memorable backdrop and even some sun; I missed the ceilidh but apparently the combination of Scottish country dancing and Salsa had to be seen to be believed.

On the substantive front, the GikII workshop was an eye opener. I think we were all amazed at the scope for combining serious academic debate with popular and even geek culture - Power Rangers (guilty), Star Trek, Buffy, Harry Potter, Beckham's hair, Spiderman, pan universal IP rights (guilty), data protection, RIPA, security theory, real and virtual property, what should and should not be regulated, is it all a matter of contract and consumer protection. Also rumours of a possible book.

The "main" conference was truly international and hosted some parallel sessions in Spanish. There were excellent and frequently controversial (and challenged) key notes from Ray Plzak and Steve Ryan, Patricia Akester, Lilian Edwards, Mia Garlick, Michael Geist and Nic Garnett and genuine debate across industry, practice, academia and policy sectors. Further details and some papers are available on the link provided.

Personality Rights Survey: contributions welcome

I'm delighted to provide space to the following project of colleague Gillian Black:

PERSONALITY RIGHTS

Celebrity endorsement is a popular marketing tool, which has considerable benefits (both financial and in kind, such as goodwill and publicity) for the companies promoting their goods or services and for the celebrities attaching their image or reputation to those goods or services. But the scope of the legal protection in the UK for companies, celebrities and the media is uncertain - what rights should celebrities have, if any? What is the position for a company wishing to use a celebrity image - does it need consent or not? What remedies are available?

Gillian Black, a lecturer in law at Edinburgh University, is researching this area and has designed a questionnaire to find out more about current opinion and experience of commercial exploitation of persona, to help determine what the best legal response should be. To have your say, click on this link http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.asp?u=940732535576 and complete the online questionnaire. It should take about 10 minutes, and it closes on 18 September 2006.