Intellectual Property
Some Basic Information
an overview of intellectual property regimes and their evolution, by economists of the Regulation School, at http://www.upmfgrenoble.fr/irepd/regulation/Lettre_regulation/index.html
Theories of Intellectual Property, by William Fisher, at http://cyber.law.harvard.edu/people/tfisher/iptheory.pdf
Copying and Copyright, by Hal Varian, at http://www.sims.berkeley.edu/%7Ehal/Papers/2004/copying-and-copyright.pdf
Legal aspects of peer to peer technology, by Pamela Samuelson, at
http://www2.sims.berkeley.edu/academics/courses/is296a-2/s05/
Key Books to Read
- Copyrights and Copywrongs: The Rise of Intellectual Property and How It Threatens Creativity
by Siva Vaidhyanathan
"A fascinating journey through the cultural history of copyright law. Copyrights and Copywrongs is remarkably readable, mercifully free of legal jargon, and entertaining. It is also thoroughly researched and includes extensive notes and references. This text belongs on the shelf of anyone interested in the ethics and development of copyright." - International Journal of Law and Information Technology
- Boldrin, Michele and Levine, David. Against Intellectual Monopoly. 2005
Available online at http://levine.sscnet.ucla.edu/general/intellectual/against.htm
"It is common to argue that intellectual property in the form of copyright and patent is necessary for the innovation and creation of ideas and inventions such as machines, drugs, computer software, books, music, literature and movies. In fact intellectual property is not like ordinary property at all, but constitutes a government grant of a costly and dangerous private monopoly over ideas. We show through theory and example that intellectual monopoly is not neccesary for innovation and as a practical matter is damaging to growth, prosperity and liberty."