A New Institutional Economics Perspective on Trademarks: Rebuilding Post Conflict Zones in Sierra Leone and Croatia, 11 J. Marshall Rev. Intell. Prop. L. 745 (2012)

This paper evaluates the role of collective trademarks in enhancing the ability of tourism clusters to stimulate economic growth, local ownership and innovative governance. Illustrating how intellectual property (IP) law can be leveraged to achieve this, we offer a new economic rationale for trademarks in the context of tourism. Two post-conflict case studies of Sierra Leone and Croatia provide a crash test for this approach. By emphasizing the role of law, institutions and infrastructure in stimulating tourism in post-conflict zones, this paper echoes new institutional economics perspectives that highlight the impact of legal structure on development. Despite widespread acknowledgement of the cluster attributes of tourism, the role of tourism and clustering in regional development policy is seldom addressed. To our knowledge, the role of collective trademarks in strengthening tourism clusters has not been investigated

Crowdsourcing patent application review: leveraging new opportunities to capitalize on innovation?

This paper evaluates the value proposition of public-private partnerships to patent review by analyzing the potential impact of crowdsourced prior art search on the European patent system. This first requires outlining the current challenges patent offices in Europe face due to their tremendous workload. The worst consequence of this for the innovation system – a drop in granted patent quality - is then described. Low standards in patent quality are believed to be the result of enormous strain on, and unreasonable expectations of, patent offices. Crowdsourcing offers a solution to many of these problems and presents a valuable resource for patent offices if the process is managed efficiently. The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) and Japanese Patent Office’s (JPO) pilot projects in community patent review are presented as opportunities from which Europe can learn. Promoting public-private partnerships in the management of crowdsourced prior art search can be a valuable solution to mitigate current challenges

The transformative impact of business models

The macroeconomic impact of advances in information and communications technologies is significant but problematic to assess. Research on these developments has been isolated to specific disciplines, easily outpaced by new innovations and few studies describe the multiple changes and their macroeconomic consequences in a holistic way. The increasing ability to organize, price and transmit information to the market is ushering in an era where economic actors are highly responsive to the market. Technological advance alone does not capture the benefits of these developments. It is the innovative business model that lies at the heart of this revolution in responsiveness. We outline four major economic shifts in this study by reference to some paradigmatic business models. These shifts include pricing strategy innovations and their effect on the creation and expansion of market spaces, structural shifts in electronic markets and the effects on transaction costs, the deeper interaction between firms and consumers and the effects on more efficient matching of supply and demand, and finally the economic impact of elasticity and infinite scalability in computing resources when delivered as a utility by cloud computing providers. These advances do not only increase the commercial possibilities, they actively alter the competitive landscape and the role of the firm and consumer. This paper establishes some key areas where the increased responsiveness of economic actors is increasingly stimulating innovation, efficiency and productivity

Promoting intellectual property monetization in developing countries : a review of issues and strategies to support knowledge-driven growth

As IP ownership grows, it is increasingly significant to identify the various mechanisms available to rights holders in developing countries to commercialize their intellectual property rights (IPRs). This study reviews several IP monetization strategies in order to emphasize the ways that IP can be used to generate domestic innovation and growth within developing nations. Essentially, we are asking: what methods enable developing country innovators to commercialize their technology within their own nation and abroad? In doing so, we outline the different commercial tools available to innovators in the developing world in order to monetize patents and foster the diffusion of technology, thus attracting opportunities for joint ventures and other forms of international technological collaboration. This method contrasts with more common approaches that investigate how developing countries can attract Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) from Multinational Corporations (MNCs) through the enforcement mechanisms of a strong IP regime

The transformative impact of business models

The macroeconomic impact of advances in information and communications technologies is significant but problematic to assess. Research on these developments has been isolated to specific disciplines, easily outpaced by new innovations and few studies describe the multiple changes and their macroeconomic consequences in a holistic way. The increasing ability to organize, price and transmit information to the market is ushering in an era where economic actors are highly responsive to the market. Technological advance alone does not capture the benefits of these developments. It is the innovative business model that lies at the heart of this revolution in responsiveness. We outline four major economic shifts in this study by reference to some paradigmatic business models. These shifts include pricing strategy innovations and their effect on the creation and expansion of market spaces, structural shifts in electronic markets and the effects on transaction costs, the deeper interaction between firms and consumers and the effects on more efficient matching of supply and demand, and finally the economic impact of elasticity and infinite scalability in computing resources when delivered as a utility by cloud computing providers. These advances do not only increase the commercial possibilities, they actively alter the competitive landscape and the role of the firm and consumer. This paper establishes some key areas where the increased responsiveness of economic actors is increasingly stimulating innovation, efficiency and productivity

Promoting intellectual property monetization in developing countries : a review of issues and strategies to support knowledge-driven growth

As IP ownership grows, it is increasingly significant to identify the various mechanisms available to rights holders in developing countries to commercialize their intellectual property rights (IPRs). This study reviews several IP monetization strategies in order to emphasize the ways that IP can be used to generate domestic innovation and growth within developing nations. Essentially, we are asking: what methods enable developing country innovators to commercialize their technology within their own nation and abroad? In doing so, we outline the different commercial tools available to innovators in the developing world in order to monetize patents and foster the diffusion of technology, thus attracting opportunities for joint ventures and other forms of international technological collaboration. This method contrasts with more common approaches that investigate how developing countries can attract Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) from Multinational Corporations (MNCs) through the enforcement mechanisms of a strong IP regime

The Transaction Cost Benefits of Electronic Patent Licensing Platforms: A Discussion at the Example of the PatentBooks Model

Current mechanisms to compensate inventors and improve legal access to their inventions remain ineffective. Manufacturers encounter significant transaction costs in the process of licensing the multitude of patent rights implicated in their products. High-technology product manufacturing requires access to a diverse pool of technologies that are owned by different organizations all over the world. The transaction costs of licensing these disparate rights are inhibiting unlicensed manufacturers in emerging economies from entering important markets and simultaneously limiting the revenue patent owners can generate from non-exclusive licenses. As communications technologies improve, innovative licensing mechanisms are emerging that can help firms avoid many of these transaction costs. Search and information costs, bargaining and decision costs, enforcement costs and adjustment costs all limit the value generated from licensing transactions. These costs are particularly severe for smaller firms that lack complementary assets to develop their products, lack experience with licensing and do not have large human and financial resources to invest in negotiation outcomes. The transaction costs of licensed manufacturing increase exponentially when having to license multiple rights among disparate rightsholders in a global market. By identifying, grouping, and valuing different rights into a single license, PatentBooks, an illustration of an electronic patent licensing platform, reduces search and information transaction costs. Firms instantaneously identify appropriate license rights from all over the globe without investing considerable resources in hundreds of discrete negotiations. Patent owners are able to generate greater non-exclusive licensing revenue from manufacturers than they could by licensing their rights in isolation. In doing so, they permit firms of all sizes and nationalities to generate more returns from technology and accelerate innovation by facilitating access to valuable inventions

A Changing Climate: Statistical Evidence of the Intellectual Property Landscape of Clean Energy Technologies

The intellectual property (IP) system plays an important role in the development and diffusion of technologies by determining the institutional context in which transactions occur. This article reviews the recent EPO report ‘Patents and Clean Energy Technologies: Bridging the Gap between Evidence and Policy’ and offers further insights into the interplay between patents, innovation in climate change mitigating technologies and access to technology. Empirical evidence and analysis of patent trends forms the basis for understanding the spectrum of policy choices available to combat climate change. In an effort to bridge the gap between policy and evidence, the EPO report provides ample statistical analysis of existing patenting trends, fleshes out the current patent landscape and assesses licensing trends in emerging technologies relating to climate change. This review evaluates these statistical insights and discusses the implications for both the developed and developing world. It aims to deepen understanding of how intellectual property influences the development of markets for green technologies

A Changing Climate: Statistical Evidence of the Intellectual Property Landscape of Clean Energy Technologies

The intellectual property (IP) system plays an important role in the development and diffusion of technologies by determining the institutional context in which transactions occur. This article reviews the recent EPO report ‘Patents and Clean Energy Technologies: Bridging the Gap between Evidence and Policy’ and offers further insights into the interplay between patents, innovation in climate change mitigating technologies and access to technology. Empirical evidence and analysis of patent trends forms the basis for understanding the spectrum of policy choices available to combat climate change. In an effort to bridge the gap between policy and evidence, the EPO report provides ample statistical analysis of existing patenting trends, fleshes out the current patent landscape and assesses licensing trends in emerging technologies relating to climate change. This review evaluates these statistical insights and discusses the implications for both the developed and developing world. It aims to deepen understanding of how intellectual property influences the development of markets for green technologies