[WSIS CS-Plenary] New Information Society Literature

[Robert Guerra]

I'm forwarding this from another list that i'm on...




DEVELOPMENT IN THE INFORMATION AGE, ISSUES IN THE REGULATION OF
INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS, COMPUTER SOFTWARE AND ELECTRONIC COMMERCE.
By Ruth L. Okediji (UNCTAD-ICTSD Project on Intellectual Property Rights
and Sustainable Development Issue Paper No. 9, May 2004). Information
and communication technologies (ICT) pose challenges to developing
countries, but at the same time offer opportunities. As the main
challenges arise from international rules on copyright and database
protection, this paper argues that developing countries should seek to
balance effective protection of intellectual property rights (IPRs)
against robust limitations of exclusive rights to encourage competition
and socially beneficial uses of ICT. In this respect, the international
IPRs system provides important flexibilities in the implementation of
IPRs obligations. To access the report visit
http://www.iprsonline.org/unctadictsd/docs/CS_Okediji.pdf

INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY AND COMPUTER SOFTWARE, A BATTLE OF COMPETING USE
AND ACCESS VISIONS FOR COUNTRIES OF THE SOUTH. By Alan Story
(UNCTAD-ICTSD Project on Intellectual Property Rights and Sustainable
Development Issue Paper No. 10, May 2004). The paper puts forward five
main findings. First, some forms of intellectual property protection
have erected a clear barrier to the spread of software across the South.
Second, free software formats are moving fast in most developing
countries. Third, after comparing the license costs of proprietary and
free software formats, the paper suggests that costs associated with
free software are significantly lower. Fourth, free software formats
might offer different advantages for technology transfer and follow-up
applications depending on the model used. Finally, free software systems
are not a mere policy choice for developing countries, they are an
important alternative for building, maintaining and changing rules that
govern information flows. To access the report visit
http://www.iprsonline.org/unctadictsd/docs/CS_Story.pdf

WHOSE TRADE ORGANIZATION? A COMPREHENSIVE GUIDE TO THE WTO. By Lori
Wallach and Patrick Woodall (The New Press, March 2004). This
publication tracks the outcomes of the WTO during its nine years of
existence, with chapters on the WTO's impact on the economies and
employment of rich and poor countries, as well as on the environment,
food safety, public health, service sectors, agriculture and human
rights. The book also details the WTO's controversial dispute resolution
system and connects WTO rules with US job losses, unsafe food, attacks
on domestic laws and burgeoning international inequality that makes
headlines daily. For further information see
http://www.citizen.org/publications/articles.cfm?ID=7304&relatedpages=1&
catID=126&secID=1185

NAFTA: TEN YEARS OF CROSS-BORDER DIALOGUES. By David Brooks and Jonathan
Fox (Interhemispheric Resource Center Americas Program Special Report,
March 2004). This article focuses on The North American Free Trade
Agreement's (NAFTA) myriad opportunities for civil society convergence
from below. Social constituency organisations -- such as labour
organisations, environmental organisations, and trade advocacy networks
-- from the US and Mexico have been interacting for more than ten years
under the increased economic integration stimulated by NAFTA. Their
experiences illuminate some of the earliest examples of people-to-people
globalisation. The article concludes that while there is a much greater
civil society network after NAFTA, the level of its organisation and its
impact have been rather limited. To access the article, visit
http://www.americaspolicy.org/reports/2004/0403nafta.html