The Disintegration of Intellectual Property? A Classical Liberal Response to a Premature Obituary

ABSTRACT:We extend the Base of the Pyramid (BoP) poverty-alleviation approach by recognizing the poor as valuable suppliers—specifically of intellectual property. Although the poor possess huge reserves of intellectual property, they are unable to participate in global knowledge networks owing to their illiteracy and poverty. This is a crippling form of social exclusion in today’s growing knowledge economy because it adversely affects their capabilities for advancement at several levels. Providing the poor access to global knowledge networks as rightful participants—as suppliers of intellectual property—leads to poverty alleviation as a result of their increased social inclusion, not only through economic benefits, but also through the poor’s improved well-being as a result of their increased self-esteem and dignity. Using concepts from social network theory, we develop a poverty-alleviation approach to harness and integrate the intellectual property of the poor into global knowledge networks through trust-based partnerships among the poor, non-governmental organizations, and multinational corporations.

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Property Values

Mechanical Engineering ◽

10.1115/1.2011-mar-2 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 133 (03) ◽

pp. 32-34

Author(s):

Leslie I. Bookoff ◽

Dinesh N. Melwani

Keyword(s):

Intellectual Property ◽

Medical Device ◽

Medical Devices ◽

Patent Protection ◽

Property Values ◽

Third Party ◽

Property A ◽

Startup Company ◽

Target Company ◽

Medical Device Company

This article focuses on the importance of intellectual property (IP) in startup companies to attract investment. Various examples of startup companies dealing with medical devices were also discussed. Much of a medical device startup’s assets, however, lie in ideas or concepts it hopes to develop into a commercial product. Patent protection often is considered a critical component of corporate transactions involving medical technologies because it can protect the significant upfront investments required for R'D and regulatory activities. Investors evaluating the IP of a target medical device company are attracted to a demonstrated awareness of IP and to a clean house as it relates to administrative issues potentially affecting the company’s intellectual property. A target company also may make investment more attractive by minimizing or eliminating contractual restrictions on the transfer of its IP. A startup company seeking its portion of investment dollars must pay attention to its IP: it must ensure that its technology is freely marketable without infringing third-party rights and that its IP portfolio is free of encumbrances and has the necessary protection.

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