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on Intellectual Property Rights |
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Issue of 2020‒10‒19
two papers chosen by Giovanni Ramello Università degli Studi del Piemonte Orientale “Amedeo Avogadro” |
| By: | Asongu, Simplice |
| Abstract: | This study extends the literature on fighting software piracy by investigating how Intellectual Property Rights (IPRs) regimes interact with technology to mitigate software piracy when existing levels of piracy are considered. Two technology metrics (internet penetration rate and number of PC users) and six IPRs mechanisms (constitution, IPR law, main IP laws, WIPO Treaties, bilateral treaties and multilateral treaties) are used in the empirical analysis. The statistical evidence is based on: (i) a panel of 99 countries for the period 1994-2010 and (ii) interactive contemporary and non-contemporary Quantile regressions.The findings show that the relevance of IPR channels in the fight against software piracy is noticeably contingent on the existing levels of technology embodied in the pirated software. There is a twofold policy interest for involving modern estimation techniques such as interactive Quantile regressions. First, it uncovers that the impact of IPR systems on software piracy may differ depending on the nature of technologies used. Second, the success of initiatives to combat software piracy is contingent on existing levels of the piracy problem. Therefore, policies should be designed differently across nations with high-, intermediate- and low-levels of software piracy. |
| Keywords: | Piracy; Business Software; Software piracy; Intellectual Property Rights |
| JEL: | F42 K42 O34 O38 O57 |
| Date: | 2020–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:103150&r=all |
| By: | Kyle W. Higham; Gaétan de Rassenfosse; Adam B. Jaffe |
| Abstract: | The 'quality' of novel technological innovations is extremely variable, and the ability to measure innovation quality is essential to sensible, evidence-based policy. Patents, an often vital precursor to a commercialised innovation, share this heterogeneous quality distribution. A pertinent question then arises: How should we define and measure patent quality? Accepting that different stakeholders have different views of this concept, we take a multi-dimensional view of patent quality in this work. We first test the consistency of popular post-grant outcomes that are often used as patent quality measures. Finding these measures to be generally inconsistent, we then use a raft of patent indicators that are defined at the time of grant to dissect the characteristics associated with different post-grant outcomes. We find broad disagreement in the relative importance of individual characteristics between outcomes and, further, significant variation of the same across technologies within outcomes. We conclude that measurement of patent quality is highly sensitive to both stakeholder viewpoint and technology type. Our findings bear implications for scholarly research using patent data as well as for policy discussions about patent quality. |
| JEL: | O31 O34 |
| Date: | 2020–09 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:nbr:nberwo:27598&r=all |