World Intellectual Wealth Organisation Proposed

wikinerd writes "Free Software Foundation Europe (FSFE) proposed the creation of a World Intellectual Wealth Organisation (WIWO) as an alternative to the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO). FSFE says that WIWO will be 'dedicated to the research and promotion of novel and imaginative ways to encourage the production and dissemination of knowledge'. The WIWO announcement is signed by 18 organisations and 29 individuals, including Dr. Richard M. Stallman."

Comments

A good idea!

[Max von H.]

I think the WIPO stands mostly nowadays as a legal proxy to enforce big corporations' patents around the world, rather than making things equitable. Furthermore, it has consistently sided with big business in the past few years which, I believe, isn't really its primary goal (public, international organizations should NOT be at the service of a few megacorps). Look at what's happening in India with "proprietary" seeds and the resuslting extortion schemes agro-megacorps like Monsanto pull upon poor farmers "guilty" of having their fields polinized by a remote crop. Software patents are also a big topic and the WIPO has repeatedly shown whom it wants to side with (big $$$).

The proposed WIWO clearly stands out as being more "compliant" with the idea of a global organization, such as the UN, working for the benefit of humankind. After all, we ALL contribute to the financing of these agencies since all countries pay for it through their UN contributions (or something close to it, you get the idea).

The concept of Intellectual Property is slowly eating itself up and will, sooner or later, collapse in great mayhem. How will we evolve if all the tools and procedures belong to a few greedy corporations dictating what or can't be invented or done? We NEED to keep an eye on our technology achievements and make sure such data isn't lost in the vaults of a company that will eventually disappear with everything it ever produced. There's tons of valuable work, studies, experiences and results that will never, ever benefit anyone because of some PROFIT motivations (the pharmaceutical industry is probably one of the most guilty in this regard).

It is an insult to humankind to deprive it from its own achievements solely on the selfish argument that "if I can't benefit from it, none shall benefit". We owe our civilization and most of its achievements to the exchange of ideas. Strangely, now that we have achieved the long-sought dream of global, instant communication we suddenly find ourselves threatened by greedy IP laws. Oh, the irony.

It's still time to change the course of things, else we'll soon find ourselves in a world forbidding personal freedom of thought and incapable of evolving at its natural pace.