China, India Push for 'Patent Free' Green Tech

Summary posted by Meridian
Source: EurActiv.com
Author: n/a

Developing nations, led de facto by China and India, are pushing a controversial proposal that would effectively end patent protection for clean technologies. The 77 developing nations, in anticipation of the climate talks in Copenhagen next month, argue that since the developed countries bear the primary responsibility for climate change, these countries should support poorer nations by providing them with clean technologies. The United States and the European Union feel that liberalizing patent rules for new green technology inventions would dramatically reduce the incentive for businesses to innovate and would stifle green job creation. A new report by the Coalition for Innovation, Employment and Development (CIED), a think tank strongly in favor of intellectual property rights, says that such a proposal would jeopardize the millions of jobs that could be created in Europe through the research and production of innovative green technologies, and says any political agreement reached in Copenhagen should instead focus on providing financial assistance to developing countries so they can purchase such technologies. Song Zhe, the Chinese ambassador to the EU, says there is no question that developing countries will need financial and technological support to help tackle climate change. The article can be viewed online at the link below.

The original article may still be available at www.euractiv.com/en/innovation/china-india-push-patent-free-green-tech/...

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