1.

Record Nr.

UNINA9910782130903321

Autore

Boldrin Michele <1956->

Titolo

Against intellectual monopoly / / Michele Boldrin, David K. Levine [[electronic resource]]

Pubbl/distr/stampa

Cambridge : , : Cambridge University Press, , 2008

ISBN

1-107-18376-6

1-281-75141-3

9786611751418

0-511-41476-5

0-511-51085-3

0-511-41544-3

0-511-41317-3

0-511-41222-3

0-511-41409-9

Descrizione fisica

1 online resource (viii, 298 pages) : digital, PDF file(s)

Disciplina

346.04/8

Soggetti

Intellectual property - Economic aspects

Competition

Monopolies

Lingua di pubblicazione

Inglese

Formato

Materiale a stampa

Livello bibliografico

Monografia

Note generali

Title from publisher's bibliographic system (viewed on 05 Oct 2015).

Nota di bibliografia

Includes bibliographical references (p. 271-286) and index.

Nota di contenuto

Introdection -- Creation under competition -- Innovation under competition -- The evil of intellectual monopoly -- The devil in Disney -- How competition works -- Defenses of intellectual monopoly -- Does intellectual monopoly increase innovation? -- The pharmaceutical industry -- The bad, the good, and the ugly.

Sommario/riassunto

'Intellectual property' - patents and copyrights - have become controversial. We witness teenagers being sued for 'pirating' music - and we observe AIDS patients in Africa dying due to lack of ability to pay for drugs that are high priced to satisfy patent holders. Are patents and copyrights essential to thriving creation and innovation - do we need them so that we all may enjoy fine music and good health? Across time and space the resounding answer is: No. So-called intellectual



property is in fact an 'intellectual monopoly' that hinders rather than helps the competitive free market regime that has delivered wealth and innovation to our doorsteps. This book has broad coverage of both copyrights and patents and is designed for a general audience, focusing on simple examples. The authors conclude that the only sensible policy to follow is to eliminate the patents and copyright systems as they currently exist.