Intellectual property (IP) should be left out of current trade negotiations with the U.S. and a deal should not be reached in secret, European civil liberties representatives advised the European Commission's trade department Wednesday. [...]

Given the massive impact that new-style trade agreements like TPP and TAFTA/TTIP are likely to have on the lives of hundreds of millions of people, it's surprising how few members of the public know about what's being negotiated in their name. Fortunately, publications are starting to run more articles on the subject, like this great piece by David Brodwin in US News. [...]

L'industria delle telecomunicazioni teme per la revisione della direttiva sull'enforcement della tutela del diritto d'autore. L'adozione di misure tecniche restrittive sarebbe nefasta per le libertà digitali. [...]

The European Commission has run a public consultation on the enforcement of IPRED – the Intellectual Property Rights Enforcement Directive. The consultation closed on the day before April Fool’s Day – but not everybody is amused. [...]

With the possibility of comprehensive copyright reform in the US in the air, we warned that lobbyists from all sides were about to be very, very busy on Capitol Hill, and it has already begun. We've heard from very reliable sources that the MPAA has basically been blanketing Congress with the attached document, visiting as many offices as possible and leaving it behind as their talking points on why copyright is just freaking awesome. [...]

Bill C-56 seems natural to support on surface but hides dangerous measures. [...]

The substance of the bill is cause for concern, yet what has many up in arms is that the bill signals Canada intention to implement ACTA. [...]

Last summer, the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement, more popularly known as ACTA, was voted down by the EU Parliament. The treaty, which was meant to streamline and standardize intellectual property laws across global jurisdictions was widely fought against by activists and protestors as an invasion of privacy and freedoms of speech. [...]

Canada has introduced a bill strongly resembling the Anti-Counterfeit Trade Agreement (ACTA), prompting speculation that authorities were prepared to ratify the notorious legislation. [...]

According to Ottawa, Bill C-56 or Combating Counterfeit Products Act, is aimed at countering harmful counterfeiting activities, much like the international ACTA treaty. [...]

The bill has raised fears that Canada may be preparing to ratify ACTA. Washington has recently encouraged Ottawa to comply with the notorious agreement. [...]

There are move afoot in Sweden that could shine a light on the murky dealings that surround anti-counterfeiting trade agreements.

Linus Nordberg, a Swedish advocate and developer for Tor, and representative of the Föreningen för digitala froch rättigheter (DFRI), or the Association for Digital Liberties, has sent a letter to the president of the European Parliament in which he asks for clarity over ACTA treaties and a full release of documents. [...]

Die geplante europäische Regelung für Verwertungsgesellschaften und Rechtstatus von "nutzergenerierten Contents" verläuft erwartet kontroversiell. [...]

Während aus den anderen Themengruppen noch nicht viel zu erfahren war - es gab weder Videostreams, noch Stellungnahmen auf der EU-Website - traf das auf das Arbeitsfeld drei, "Benutzerbestimmte Inhalte" nicht zu.

The European Commission has unveiled 'Licences for Europe', an initiative that encourages content stakeholders and consumers to work out short-term solutions to Europe's copyright issues ahead of creating legislation. [...]

Digital rights group La Quadrature du Net slammed the initiative as a "parody of debate" dominated by the entertainment industry. [...]

It's not often that trade agreements make it to the front page of the newspapers, but that's what happened on New Year's Day:
« David Cameron has made the establishment of a free trade agreement between Europe and the US a key priority during the UK's leadership of the G8 group of richest nations this year. » [...]

The European Commission has finally killed ACTA, the controversial Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement, by withdrawing its bid to have the treaty's legality confirmed.

ACTA was rejected by the European Parliament in July following widespread protests across Europe. The treaty had been agreed to and signed on behalf of Europe by the European Commission in January 2012. […]