[WSIS CS-Plenary] Fwd: [wsis com-ch] Lessig blogs about IP and how neither WSIS nor WIPO want to touch it

[Thomas Ruddy]

Dear plenary,
Adam Peake has just posted separately
> The thread about Ms. Boland's (mis)characterization
> of open-source software 

to which Lessig refers in another of his equally
interesting postings which is reproduced below.

Will Intellectual Property (or whatever ideas or
innovations should be called instead) still be taboo
at PrepCom 3?

Thomas Ruddy

> --- Alex Schroeder <alex at gnu.org> wrote:
> > To: wsis at comunica-ch.net
> > Subject: [wsis com-ch] Lessig blogs about IP and
> how
> > neither WSIS nor WIPO want to touch it
> > From: Alex Schroeder <alex at gnu.org>
> > Date: Sat, 23 Aug 2003 20:15:57 +0200
> > 
> > I just read Lessig's blog.  It is very interesting
> > since he appeared
> > at prepcom two, and this is the first time I heard
> > about his keynote
> > from himself.
> > 
> > Remember back when I first started taking an
> > interest in WSIS how I
> > noticed that Lessig's keynote was missing from the
> > WSIS website?
> > Hehe, no reason to be paranoid about it.  ;)
> > 
> > Anyway, I think this post illustrates why we
> should
> > make IP -- that is
> > copyright, patents, and free software -- an
> > important part of WSIS.
> > Even though I have had some discussions with Mdm.
> > Mettraux from IPI
> > and Msr. Salvade from SUISA concerning this. 
> They,
> > too, claimed that
> > WSIS should not touch upon the subject.  We
> should!
> > 
> > 
> > Alex.
> > 
> > 
> > 
> > 2003-08-22T14:18:42-08:00
> > 
> > The thread about Ms. Boland's
> (mis)characterization
> > of open-source
> > software (remember the days when statements were
> > either true or
> > false?) reminded me of an odd fight I found myself
> > in the middle of at
> > the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS)
> > in Geneva in
> > February.
> > 
> > I was asked to give one of three keynotes
> launching
> > the second
> > preparatory conference. At a press conference
> before
> > the keynote, a
> > reporter asked what I was going to talk about. I
> > indicated vaguely I
> > would discuss the importance of the public domain
> to
> > innovation,
> > etc. (same old boring stuff). But I was then
> > astonished when the
> > moderator of the event, Maria CATTAUI,
> > Secretary-General of the
> > International Chamber of Commerce, scolded me that
> > issues of
> > "intellectual property" were not to be discussed
> > because they were
> > "exclusively" the concern of WIPO.
> > 
> > I promptly threw away the talk I had intended to
> > give, and gave a
> > completely different talk about how -- Ms.
> Cattaui's
> > scolding
> > notwithstanding -- it was crucial that a summit on
> > the world
> > "information society" consider the role of the
> > public domain in
> > spreading knowledge and culture even if WIPO
> claimed
> > exclusive
> > jurisdiction of the matter. That assured I won't
> be
> > invited back to
> > WSIS anytime soon (or at least by Ms. Cattaui).
> > 
> > It is therefore extraordinary now that people
> > purporting to speak for
> > WIPO would say that WIPO too is not to consider
> > issues about the
> > public domain.  Neither at WIPO, nor at WSIS, nor
> > apparently
> > anywhere. Except among us commies I guess. (Fellow
> > travelers, for our
> > next secret communist meeting, be sure to read the
> > latest great work
> > by some of the most prominent IP commies out
> there. 
> > Linked here.)
> > 
> > http://www.lessig.org/blog/archives/001439.shtml
> > 
> > 
> > 
> > -- 
> >
>
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