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Artificial Intelligence and Intellectual Property: An Economic Perspective
Economic Research Working Paper No.77
The emergence of Artificial Intelligence (AI) has profound implications for intellectual property (IP) frameworks. While much of the discussion so far has focused on the legal implications, we focus on the economic dimension. We dissect AI's role as both a facilitator and disruptor of innovation and creativity. Recalling economic principles and reviewing relevant literature, we explore the evolving landscape of AI innovation incentives and the challenges it poses to existing IP frameworks. From patentability dilemmas to copyright conundrums, we find that there is a delicate balance between fostering innovation and safeguarding societal interests amidst rapid technological progress. We also point to areas where future economic research could offer valuable insights to policymakers.
Publication year: 2024
From Paper to Platform: Publishing, Intellectual Property and the Digital Revolution
Supporting the development of a national book and reading culture through local professional writers and publishers requires an understanding of the way this sector of the creative economy works and how it is affected by the digital revolution. This publication is intended to help policymakers, particularly those in countries that are interested in promoting local publishing, to understand the publishing industry better and to understand how copyright and other policies affect the way books are being created, published and consumed.
Publication year: 2021
What is Intellectual Property?
Intellectual property (IP) refers to creations of the mind – everything from works of art to inventions, computer programs to trademarks and other commercial signs. This booklet introduces the main types of IP and explains how the law protects them. It also introduces the work of WIPO, the global forum for IP services, policy, information and cooperation.
Publication year: 2020
Exclusive content and platform competition in Latin America
Economic Research Working Paper No. 63
Platforms often compete over non-price strategies such as the exclusive distribution of products. But these strategies are not always welfare-enhancing. Using rich data on audiovisuals distributed on platforms in Brazil, we find that non-exclusive distribution and availability of titles across platforms is more effective in deterring online piracy than in the single homing case. Moreover, in certain markets (TVOD), it induces higher average investment in the production of new titles upstream. We discuss options of copyright and antitrust policies in the light of these findings.
Grand rights and opera reuse today
Economic Research Working Paper No. 62
This article studies the economic role of grand rights in the incentives to stage and reuse works from the opera canon. It complements previous research on the incentives to create new opera (Giorcelli and Moser, 2020) in the way it looks at copyright taxing availability and follow-on creativity around works. Based on a unique dataset of global opera performances, we find that changes in copyright status increase the number of total performances individual works receive on stage once copyright expires. Moreover, we provide preliminary evidence on chilling, long-term effects of status around premiering operas and revivals at the beginning of the copyright term. Based on these findings, we discuss limitations of the study and novel options for copyright policy frameworks.
Batman forever? The economics of overlapping rights
Economic Research Working Paper No. 61
When copyrighted comic characters are also protected under trademark laws, intellectual property (IP) rights can be overlapping. Arguably, registering a trademark can increase transaction costs for cross-media uses of characters, or it can help advertise across multiple sales channels. In an application to book, movie and video game publishing industries, we thus ask how creative reuse (innovation in uses) is affected in situations of overlapping rights, and whether ‘fuzzy boundaries' of right frameworks are in fact enhancing or decreasing content sales.
IP Training Institutions Brochure
Learn more about the WIPO Academy's support to Member States in establishing self-sustaining IPTIs
COVID-19 Impact on Artistic Income
Economic Research Working Paper No. 65
This paper assesses the impact of the pandemic crisis on self-employed income among artists resident in Germany. Using unique data from the latest available public insurance records, we show that musicians and performing artists are among the most vulnerable groups, and that writers, on average, are relatively less impacted. Moreover, the paper looks at the impact of the 2020 crisis on income differences by gender, career stages and regions, and it investigates the effect of specific non-pharmaceutical, public intervention implemented in German states.
Alternative Dispute Resolution Mechanisms for Business-to-Business Digital Copyright and Content-Related Disputes - Executive Summary
A report on the results of the WIPO-MCST Survey
This executive summary reveals the key findings from the WIPO-MCST survey on alternative dispute resolution (ADR) mechanisms to resolve business-to-business (B2B) disputes related to digital copyright and digital content
Alternative Dispute Resolution Mechanisms for Business-to-Business Digital Copyright and Content-Related Disputes
This timely publication analyses the results of a survey carried out by WIPO, with the financial support of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism of the Republic of Korea (MCST), on the current use of alternative dispute resolution (ADR) mechanisms to handle business-to-business disputes related to digital copyright and digital content. Drawing on more than 1,000 responses from a wide range of stakeholders in 129 countries, the report is a unique source of information on which to base the development of tailored ADR mechanisms.