The Emerging Recognition of the Importance of Design and Creative Practice in Product/Service Innovation: Moving Away from a Strict Adherence to Technology and the ‘Hard’ Sciences

In his April 2008 report, ‘Between a Hard Rock and a Soft Space: Design, Creative Practice and Innovation’, Dr. John H. Howard discusses how the arts, humanities and social sciences can contribute to innovation systems and innovation policy by recognizing that design and creative practice play a central role in innovation. He argues that, while […]

Can we blame strong IP protection for climate change?

In recent years, there has been a growing concern about the increasing levels of greenhouse gas emissions and their detrimental effect on the environment. To respond to this concern, countries have agreed to abide by world-wide abatement targets by reducing CO2 emissions to a certain level.  However, curbing greenhouse gas emissions in developing countries has been […]

Alpha geeks, Golf Shoes, and the Waterloo Miracle

On Tuesday February 3, the Canadian Intellectual Property Council (CIPC), under the umbrella of the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, held a conference on the global threat of illicit trade. The conference brought together stakeholders interested in the protection of intellectual property rights within Canada and around the world. IP Osgoode’s Rex Shoyama was invited as […]

The CRTC telecom decision: net neutrality supporters might have lost a battle but still have a shot at winning the war

The buzz around ‘net neutrality’ has started again. ‘Net neutrality’ is a term that became widely used and debated in the early 2000s. Simply put ‘net neutrality’ means ‘absolute non-discrimination’ against any site or content on the net. In particular, the term suggests that users should have equal access to the internet and that broadband […]

Top U.S. court scales back patent royalties

A recent landmark decision by the United States Supreme Court in Quanta v. LG Electronics has effectively restricted patent-holders’ ability to claim infringement for subsequent uses of licensed products. This is the latest step by the top American court to circumscribe the scope of entitlements of patent-holders by limiting the ability of companies to collect […]

Perspectives from a former scientist-in-training: If I knew then, what I know now…

In its Strategic Plan published in 2006, Ontario’s Ministry of Research and Innovation called for the generation of an “innovation culture” in Ontario with one goal of increasing the commercialization of research taking place at universities. I could not help but think of my own experience as a grad student in a cell biology research […]