Economic Growth and Intellectual Property Rights Protection

The conventional wisdom regarding intellectual property rights and economic growth is that developing countries need stronger intellectual property rights to promote economic growth. Historically, developed countries took advantage of the lack of strong intellectual property rights laws to promote technology transfers and economic growth. But developing countries are under extreme political pressure not to follow this path. This chapter offers an empirical reassessment of the arguments favouring stronger intellectual property laws for developing countries. The research presented indicates that there is reason to question at least part of the assumed relationship between IPR and economic growth. Additional evidence suggests that IPR protection is not always enacted as part of sound economic policy, but rather as a result of political pressure.