Overview

This collection of essays highlights the sometimes absurd outcomes which an unjustified overprotection of intellectual property (IP) may lead to. It collects and comments on a series of IP disputes which have taken the notion of IP protection to extremes. From individuals being sued for hundreds of thousands of dollars for sharing a playlist, to sports spectators being arrested for wearing the ‘wrong’ dresses, passing through granting patents for inventions obtained by misappropriating traditional knowledge, and trademark protection of merely descriptive signs, this book brings together a broad range of examples from across the IP spectrum where protection and enforcement have been used or threatened on unreasonable and/or untenable grounds. The aim of the book is to criticise these excesses precisely because they harm IP; and because they contribute to creating an environment where more and more people are led to ‘hate’ IP, and view it as a protectionist regime which discourages creativity in innovation and ends up safeguarding the owners of monopolistic rights which restrict trade, competition and people’s freedom. This is not, therefore, a book against IP, it is instead a call for change and an attempt to ‘save’ IP through critiquing its excesses and preventing such a fascinating area of law from continuing to be an easy target for criticism. The book includes a foreword by Jason Mazzone, Albert E Jenner Jr Professor of Law at the University of Illinois, USA.

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9781509944927

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Reviews

The book adds an original in-depth contribution to the cause of the 'happy few' who contrast the diffused over-protectionist approaches to the interpretation of IP law. It is a welcome manifesto that emphasizes how only in a balanced perspective IP can best achieve its historic fundamental goal 'to promote the progress of science and useful arts'. --Gustavo Ghidini, Senior Professor of IP and Competition Law, Luiss University, Italy This book is unique in its approach and analysis: it illustrates situations of excessive claims and decisions that interfere with third parties' legitimate rights and deny the fundamental public policy principles that underpin the grant of such protection. The refined legal analyses of these cases provide invaluable lessons for policy makers, scholars, practitioners and the judiciary. Importantly, they tell us how to prevent the misuse of the law and its ensuing undue social and economic costs. --Carlos Correa, University of Buenos Aires, Argentina

Author Information

Enrico Bonadio is Reader in Intellectual Property Law at City, University of London, UK. Aislinn O’Connell is Lecturer in Law at Royal Holloway University of London, UK.

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