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Common

knowledgeHow access to informationand ideas can drive development

Media briefing

Promoting dialogue, debate and change

All human development is based on theacquisition, spread and use of knowledge.Whether it is the know-how to produce life-savingmedicines or the latest innovation in farmtechnology, access to knowledge can bring powerand profitable returns. Unequal access, on theother hand, can create injustice particularlywhen based on economic disparity. This briefing

outlines the main arguments supporting knowledgeas a tool for development, focusing on the keysectors shaping and influencing peoples lives.

This briefing is the sixth in

a series of short publications

for the media on issues relating

to the information society.

To read all the briefings online,

go to www.panos.org.uk/infosoc

For further information, contact

[email protected]


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What is intellectual property?

Intellectual property is a legal devicethat gives exclusive rights to creationsof the mind, including literary works,designs and discoveries. Patents andcopyrights protect intellectual propertyrights by limiting access to informationand goods. Patents protect inventions,such as a microchip component or a newantibiotic, while copyright applies to theexpression of ideas, such as a book,song or computer software programme.

While patents and copyrights protectthe rights of creators, inventors and

discoverers, some people argue thatintellectual property rights can also helpthe systematic development of publicknowledge: an intellectual propertyright cannot be secured without makingan idea public; it therefore adds to thecommon stock of public knowledge.

Access to knowledge

Growing concern over moves to controlthe spread of knowledge has led tothe formation of an access to knowledge(A2K) movement, whose membersadvocate for intellectual propertylegislation to be balanced and forknowledge to be regarded as a meansto further the social and economicdevelopment of all countries, and notsimply as a profit-making tool.

The A2K movement aims to changethe way knowledge is regulatedacross various sectors worldwide, andchallenges the extent of intellectualproperty. A2K seeks large-scale changes

in the information- and knowledge-sharingaspects of policies in sectors such asinformation technology, broadcasting,agriculture,health, education and publiclyfunded academic and scientific research.

2 Common knowledge: How access to information and ideas can drive development

Current debates on access to knowledge

are shrouded in technical jargon, yet

the outcomes of these debates have

a profound effect on peoples everyday

lives. Governments remain the largest

repositories of data in many countries.

There is an urgent need to get behind

the jargon and encourage informed

public debate around the issue, if access

to knowledge is not going to remain

an obscure and distant issue for many

of the worlds citizens. Freedom of

information knowledge about credit

entitlements, for example is crucial

for empowering citizens and for

democratic governance.

Information and knowledge developedin the private sector comes at a price.Drug companies, computer softwarefirms and agricultural conglomeratesvalue their products according to thelevel of innovation that goes into them.Their investment in terms of time,skillsand resources can be considerable.Investment is also concentratedgeographically, with 86 per cent ofprivate sector research and development(R&D) taking place in six industrialisedcountries. In 2006, a UK report1 foundthat three sectors pharmaceuticals and

biotechnology, technology hardware andequipment, and cars and parts accountfor more than half of all global R&Dinvestment. Indeed, global investmentsin R&D reached US$1 trillion in 2006,with pharmaceutical company Pfizer thehighest investor in the US accountingfor US$8.2 billion in that country.

Access to these goods and to know-howis usually expensive and protected bylegal copyright. Private companies arguethat they need to put up this protective

barrier, and high prices are necessaryto recoup the costs of their large-scaleinvestments. They say that knowledgeand innovation without incentives, ie,competition and profits, does not attractcreative minds.

Critics respond by claiming that theserestrictions create a barrier to thesocial and economic developmentof poorer countries and, ultimately, tothe achievement of the United NationsMillennium Development Goals.

1For more information:www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/independent_reviews

The A2K movement seeks changes in theknowledge-sharing aspects of education policies.GIACOMO PIROZZI | PANOS PICTURES

Some people argue

that intellectual property

rights can also help the

systematic development

of public knowledge: an

intellectual property

right cannot be secured

without making an idea

public; it therefore adds

to the common stock

of public knowledge.


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Intellectual propertyin everyday life

Patents protect:

the lid

the seal

the contents

Trade marks protect:

the jarthe label design

brand names

colour palletes

Registered and unregistered

design rights protect:

the lid

the jar

Copyright protects:

the label design

Adapted from Gowers Review ofIntellectual Property, HM TreasuryDepartment, London.

Gowers Review

of Intellectual

Property

The development agenda would workto ensure that intellectual propertyis protected as a means of promotinggrowth rather than as an end in itself.Indeed, WIPO adopted the developmentagenda in October 2007, but how it

will be implemented remains to be seen.Another international body thatis active in this field is the World TradeOrganization (WTO), which, like WIPO,is based in Geneva. The agreementon trade-related aspects of intellectualproperty rights (TRIPS) is the centrepieceof WTO intellectual property regulation,representing a vision of globallyharmonised intellectual propertyprotection.

On many counts, a large numberof developing nations stand to losemuch more than they will gain fromsuch harmonisation. For that reason,they have been critical where they believethe practical impact on them has beenneglected. However, the TRIPS agreementdoes also provide an opportunity forflexible implementation. The provisionsfor exceptions and limitations in theTRIPS framework favour the poorestcountries allowing them to accesscheap and generic versions of branded

drugs, for instance. A2K fights for anexpansive approach to this flexibility.

Balanced intellectual property

laws the A2K approach

Common development is more

important than private wealth.

Because knowledge plays such animportant role in economic growth, anysustainable attempt at poverty reductionmust address knowledge flows.

Accountability and transparency must

be promoted at the national level.

Citizens wellbeing depends on accessto the vast amounts of knowledgeheld by governments. Legal reformsshould promote access to governmentinformation, freedom of expression anduniversal access to telecommunicationsnetworks.

Access to knowledge increasescreativity, development and utility.

Open source software, as opposed toproprietary software, is an example ofa knowledge environment where relaxedintellectual property protection canlead to greater information production,as well as opportunities for corporateprofit-making through the provisionof services and development of supportnetworks (see the Panos London mediabriefing Giving away secrets: Can open

source convert the software world?at: www.panos.org.uk/infosoc).

The politics of intellectual property

in the international context

Copyrights and patents are conferredby national governments,with anincreasing overlay of global treatiesand requirements designed toencourage investment in the creationof inventions and ideas. Today, theWorld Intellectual Property Organization(WIPO) oversees these treaties onintellectual property rights.

Some countries believe that WIPOand other intellectual property treatiesprotect the position of powerful businessinterests in developed countries atthe expense of other interests. A2Kadvocates say that WIPO needs toembrace explicitly new developmentgoals that go beyond the task of simplyprotecting intellectual property rights.

Several southern countries have

suggested that WIPO should adopta development agenda,which wouldmake economic growth in developingcountries an explicit component ofits mission.

Ideas areexpensive toproduce butcheap to copy.


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Affordable ARV drugs in Thailand

In Thailand, where 580,000 people (1.4 per cent of the population) areHIV positive and AIDS-related illness is a leading cause of death,2 the governmentprovides ARV medicines for a nominal fee to all those who need them butcannot afford them.

In November 2006 Thailand lowered the price of an ARV called Efavirenz(Sustiva), the patent of which is owned by the US pharmaceutical companyMerck. In February 2007, it brought down the price of a second ARV (Kaletrawhich combines the two drugs Lopinavir and Ritonavir), owned by anotherUS company, Abbott Laboratories. The Thai government did this by issuinga compulsory licence which allows countries to copy and use a patented drugwithout the permission of the patent-holder under certain conditions.

The Thai move has significantly lowered the price of both drugs. A Reuters articlein November 20063 revealed that this move brought down the price of Efavirenztreatment from US$38.84 to US$2022 per month, enabling the governmentto increase the number of people under treatment from 17,000 to 100,000.Under the terms of the licence, those who can afford to buy the patented drugwill not have access to the cheaper generic version, and the patent-holderreceives a 0.5 per cent royalty on sales of the locally produced generic drug.

Although the TRIPS agreement allows compulsory licences, there has beena backlash against the Thai governments action. Abbott laboratories hasannounced that it will not be applying for licences to sell seven of its newestproducts in Thailand, while the US government has placed Thailand on a priority

watch list of countries believed to be committing intellectual proper ty piracy.This move could damage trade relations between Thailand and the US.

The TRIPS agreement

TRIPS ensures that all the profits from

the sale of a product go to the individualsor companies who hold the patent.This is particularly controversial in thefield of medicine. When a companydevelops a drug, it can apply for a patentthat allows it to control who has accessto the drug and at what price. This resultsin high prices which restrict access tolife-saving medicines, especially forpeople in developing countries and theirgovernments. An example is the manypatented life-saving antiretroviral drugs

(ARVs) used in the treatment of HIVand AIDS.

Pharmaceutical companies arguethat they need to charge high prices tocover the costs of R&D to develop newdrugs. The A2K movement seeks waysto bridge the gap between the need toencourage the development of medicinesand the need to provide affordablelife-saving drugs.

Public health, intellectualproperty and human lives

2More information available onwww.unaids.org

3To read the full article, seewww.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/BKK14412.htm

The cost of some essential drugs

puts them out of the reach of manyimpoverished people. Patenteddrugs are controlled by theirpharmaceutical producers, butgovernments can intervene tocreate compulsory licences,whichallow the drug to be copied andsold more cheaply. Alternatively,this Jamaican woman is collectingher government-subsidisedprescription drugs.NEIL COOPER | PANOS PICTURES


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Governments and public agenciesspend billions of dollars on R&D

to find solutions to problems and seekinnovations to improve quality of life.The R&D economy is huge: in theUS alone, government research agenciesspend US$140 billion annually on R&D.Once research has been conducted,scientists publish their results inpeer-reviewed journals a publicationmodel that evolved in the early-to-midtwentieth century, and is now aUS$6 billion-per-year industry dominatedby a handful of large publishers. Theindustry quality-checks and catalogues

articles, usually deposits them in privateweb domains and sells them at a highprice through journal subscriptions.

The scholarly media industry is thefastest growing media sub-sectorof the past 15 years.4 Althoughdominated by a handful of large firms,nearly 2,000 publishers issue closeto two million articles in more than70,000 journals every year. In 2000,the turnover of the UKs scholarlymedia was US$48 billion significantlylarger than the UK pharmaceuticalindustry (US$24 billion).5 Transferringthe intellectual property rights ofauthors to publishers is a preconditionfor publishing in academic journals.

A2K advocates argue that restrictedaccess to scholarly articles may preventcitizens, researchers and policymakersfrom participating in the knowledgerevolution because they cannot affordthe cost of access.

Moreover, they say the scientificknowledge base in the developingworld can only be strengthened throughaccess to the global library of research

information. Currently, this is inhibitedby the high costs of journal subscriptions,with the result that most institutes inpoorer countries cannot afford to buymany of the journals they need.

They also argue that public money iseffectively subsidising the production

of scholarly material which is then soldback to public institutions by privatepublishing companies. Public moneyfunds research; pays researcherssalaries; and funds public institutionsto purchase these research findingsfrom scholarly media. A2K supporterssay this triple payment is unfair andunethical. For example, if the SouthAfrican government funds a researchproject on malaria and publishes theresults in a scholarly journal, SouthAfrican universities and doctors can

only access this knowledge after makinganother payment.

Open access publishing

A diverse collection of A2K voicesis promoting open access publishing,through which web-based journalsoperated by non-profit organisations canselect their own articles for publicationthrough a peer-review process, and makethem freely available. Several scientificdisciplines are in the midst of successful

experiments in open access publishing,including the Public Library of Sciencein the field of biology and medicine.

Open access publishing is not without itschallenges, however. Although publicationcan be cheap, it is not free. Thus far,costs have been met by a combinationof private funding and publishing fees(where authors pay a fee to publish inthe journal), but the sustainability of thisapproach has not been demonstrated.Other problems include:

p proprietary journals have capacities toquality-check and edit research findings something that the nascent open access

journals are struggling to address

p new online journals have been unableto join the top ranks of scientificpublications because of a lack ofsupport and recognition from academicpeer groups and government bodies.

Vijay, founder of Savethe Traditional SeedsMovement, India

Our traditional agriculture was fullyself-reliant. The seeds, the manure andthe bullock, everything was personal.Only seeds were exchanged by farmers.

Open or closed?Accessing scientific knowledge for development

4Read the full industry overview

here: www.econ.ucsb.edu/~tedb/Journals/morganstanley.pdf

5For more analysis on theeconomics of scientificpublishing: www.wellcome.ac.uk/doc_WTD003181.html


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What is responsible for the high cost

of life-saving drugs for malaria, TB andHIV and AIDS?

Who benefits from this high cost?

What initiatives are being taken bythe government to negotiate withpharmaceutical companies to minimisethese costs?

Do farmers in your country have to payfor seeds? If so, why? What do farmersthink of their situation?

What is the reason behind paying,if that is the case?

Do you know of any of your countrystraditional and indigenous cropsor species which are the subjectof intellectual property laws?

What kind of role are governments andcivil society organisations playing here?

Is your government committed toimplementing open access publishingprinciples?

How much of your countrys publiclyfunded research is published by privatepublishing companies?

Does your local doctor/health practitionerhave access to the latest informationabout local diseases?

Is your government willing to share

data/information with its citizens?

Is your government proactively seekingto adopt cost-effective non-proprietaryinformation systems?

Are there basic legal instruments foraccess, such as a right to informationact in your country? If so, how effectiveare they?

Health and

pharmaceuticals

Agriculture

Research, education

and knowledge

Politics

Sector A2K issues


Questions and story ideas


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What can journalists do?

Access to knowledge is a useful lensfor journalists when reporting on issuesrelated to health, medicine, education,politics, information technology,

the music industry, agriculture anddiscussions around the achievementof the millennium development goals.Although policies in these sectors arecomplex, the A2K approach can beuseful for understanding the issuesfrom the perspective of development.

The challenge to journalists:

bring the A2K debate into the

public arena

Issues relating to free access to

information come up in many differentsectors and in diverse forums. Advocatesof the A2K approach face a stiff challengein convincing individuals, companies,governments and international agenciesabout its place and need in thedevelopment arena. Those who investin the intellectual property law systembelieve that it offers the best if not theonly way to create incentives for theproduction and distribution of knowledge.

The A2K debate has so far been

dominated by specialists. It is now timeto involve the general public by increasingpublic awareness and generating a widerdebate around the issue. Journalistscan do this by clarifying the links betweenthe issues and principles of enhancedaccess to information and knowledgefor human development and the policiesbehind national and internationaldevelopment goals.

Academic knowledge is an areawhere access can be restricted

by publishers charging a highprice for journal subscriptions.The A2K movement argues thatthis area should be opened up sothat everyone can take advantageof the information available.LIBA TAYLOR | PANOS PICTURES


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Panos London

9 White Lion StreetLondon N1 9PDUnited Kingdom

tel +44 (0)20 7278 1111fax +44 (0)20 7278 [email protected]

Useful websites for more informationwww.iprsonline.org an online portal on intellectual property rights (IPR) andsustainable development, including a glossary of IPR terms and the latest IPR news.

www.wipo.int the official website of the World Intellectual Property Organization.

www.wto.org/english/tratop_e/trips_e/trips_e.htm information on intellectualproperty in the World Trade Organization, including news and information on TRIPS.

www.wipo.int/freepublications/en/intproperty/907/wipo_pub_907.pdf a simple guide to intellectual property.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Access_to_knowledge popular glossary on theA2K movement.

www.keionline.org useful source of research on knowledge resources.

www.odfalliance.org clearly written website of the international campaign for OpenDocument Format (ODF) to ensure that government information is accessible.

http://balkin.blogspot.com/2006/04/what-is-access-to-knowledge.html short summary explaining the importance of A2K.

http://research.yale.edu/isp/a2k/wiki/index.php/Main_Page Wiki of theYale University A2K conference with useful resources and presentations.

www.accessmed-msf.org website of the campaign for access to essential medicineof the international humanitarian aid organisation Mdecins Sans Frontires.

www.soros.org/initiatives/information donor champion for open accessto knowledge.

A few sample articles on A2K issueswww.nytimes.com/2007/05/07/opinion/07mehta.html op-ed from the New York

Times on the patenting of Indian traditional knowledge and generic medicines.http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/4916044.stm write-up by theproducer of a programme on the Neem tree which has been the subject of courtbattles over patents on it.

www.iht.com/articles/2005/11/18/yourmoney/mpatent.php old but usefuljournalistic piece.

Panos London is not responsible for facts and views expressed on external internet sites.

Experts who contributed to the preparation of this briefing:

Eddan Katz Executive Director, Yale Information Society Project

Rudy Kleysteuber Yale Law School 2007

Christen Linke Young Yale Information Society Project Student Fellow

Cover image:

There are thousands of varietiesof rice grown and consumedaround the world. Many of themhave come about throughconservation and agriculturalinnovation by indigenouscommunities. It would be difficultto put a price on this innovation.An attempt some years ago bya multinational company to patentthe popular Basmati rice waschallenged by the Indian and

Pakistani governments.PHILIPPE LISSAC | PANOS PICTURES

Global investment in R&Dreached US$1 trillion in 2006.Access to the resulting goods

and know-how is usuallyexpensive and protected bylegal copyright.FRAM PETIT | PANOS PICTURES

This briefing is a joint production betweenPanos London and Yale University.

The Information Society Project at Yale Law School is a centrefor research and advocacy on the implications of the Internet,telecommunications and new information technologies.http://research.yale.edu/isp

For other Panos London media briefings on the information society,please go to www.panos.org.uk/infosoc

Panos London,November 2007. This document may be freelyquoted, reproduced or translated, in part or in full, provided thesource is acknowledged.