Journal Article
Intellectual property rights and product effectiveness
Abstract: Recent economic literature concludes that an invention-importing country, where domestic invention is scarce or nonexistent, may reduce its welfare and, in some cases, world welfare, by protecting intellectual property developed elsewhere. The analysis presented in this article uses economic theory to show that such a conclusion may not be fully warranted for a wide range of products, such as antibiotics, fungicides, herbicides, and pesticides, whose effectiveness diminishes with cumulative use. Both developed and developing countries may find that protecting intellectual property rights for these products will enhance welfare - even when their invention is provided for free.
Keywords: Intellectual property; Imports;
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Bibliographic Information
Provider: Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas
Part of Series: Economic and Financial Policy Review
Publication Date: 1997
Issue: Q IV
Pages: 15-20