IPR Protection in the High-Tech Industries: A Model of Piracy

This article investigates the relation between the level of publicness of digital goods – i.e. their degree of non-excludability and non-rivalness – and the pirating behaviour of the consumers. The main focus is put on the difference between the ex-ante level of publicness – determined by the anti-piracy strategies of the firms – and the ex-post level of publicness – which is a consequence of external factors such as the consumers network structure, the consumers sharing behaviour, etc. The two models developed in the article detail the required conditions for anti-piracy strategies to be successful and show the influence of the economic environment on these conditions.Digital goods, Piracy, Public goods, Free-riding, Intellectual Property Rights

Understanding the Challenges of the Digital Economy: The Nature of Digital Goods

This article investigates the economic nature and characteristics of digital goods. Such goods are, due to their replicability, shown to be public goods (albeit in an evolutionary way) and durable goods. Furthermore, the content of such goods, combined with their durability, makes them experience goods. While only one of these characteristics would be sufficient to create difficulties for producers and lead to market failure, this article demonstrates that each of the characteristics reinforces the other. The framework presented in the article is then applied to two important issues: the new trend of massive consumer piracy and the overall problem of value of digital goodsdigital goods, public goods, durable goods, experience goods, piracy.

White Knight or Trojan Horse? The Consequences of Digital Rights Management for Consumers, Firms and Society

Due to its ability to solve all main problems associated with digital goods, Digital Rights Management is the favourite option used by companies to tackle piracy. The aim of this article is to discuss the consequences of DRM for consumers, firms and society. The rationales of DRM are discussed and the expected benefits for firms are presented.. In contrast, consumers are shown to be likely to see few benefits in DRM. This article demonstrates that even a standard DRM system is unlikely to improve social welfare. The article concludes with some public policy recommendations.Digital Rights Management, Digital Goods, Piracy, Excludability, Durability, Sampling.

3D Printing and intellectual property futures

This report contains socio-legal research conducted on the relationship between 3D printing and intellectual property (IP) at the current point in time and in potential future scenarios, through the use of horizon-scanning methods in six countries—China, France, India, Russia, Singapore and the UK - to build a rich picture of this issue, comprising both developed and emerging economies

GridEcon - A Market Place for Computing Resources

This paper discusses the rationales for a Grid market and, in particular, the introduction of a market place for trading commoditized computing resources. The market place proposed makes computing resources from different providers substitutable through virtualization. This includes the definition of a spot and future market as well as the parameters that a market mechanism for computing resources should consider. The above market place is complemented by a set of value-added services (e.g. insurance against resource failures, capacity planning, resource quality assurance, stable price offering) that ensure quality for Grid users over time. The market place technology for all of the above services has been designed by the GridEcon project, contributing to a broader adoption of Grid technology and enabling a service-oriented knowledge utility environment.This work has been funded by the European Commission within the context of the FP6 Project GridEcon, Grid Economics and Business Models, (FP6-2005-IST5-033634)

Rethinking innovation management and business models in the digital era

Sciences de gestio