IP Calibration
Oxford University Press eBooks · 2014
Abstract International intellectual property policy debates have moved inexorably towards calibration. This is fairly recent, however, and has not been completely internalized in negotiations. Indeed, when the first edition of this book was published (2007), it was still controversial to say that the TRIPS Agreement had entered a national calibration phase. Two of the key insights that have emerged since then and seem almost self-evident today are that (a) because each country is uniquedifferent, it and should tailor its intellectual property policy to its own needs; and (b) that intellectual property policy forms part of a broader set of policies designed to maximize domestic innovation while taking due account of welfare costs in key areas such as access to pharmaceutical products and the development of vibrant marketplaces for products services and ideas. This had led to the search for proper policy levers and parameters to perform a proper calibration analysis. Calibration is not simple, but it is essential. Policies designed to optimize innovation while minimizing welfare costs should enhance economic growth, facilitate cultural prosperity, and foster human development.