Pros And Cons Of Intellectual Property

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Intellectual Property laws Introduction “The right to own one's genius is not a new concept. However, with the arrival of the digital age, it has become much harder to remain in control of one's intellectual property. Intellectual property has grown from the need to protect one's new invention, to the need to protect a slogan or a color. In other words, intellectual property rights no longer protect solely the interest of preserving a trade secret; it is now the interest to preserve one's monetary gain” (http://classes.soe.ucsc.edu/cmpe080e/Spring05/projects/ip/). This report will look at the pros and cons of intellectual property rights and the impact it has on society. Intellectual property is a broad concept that covers various forms of knowledge that can be assigned specific rights relating to intellectual creativity or related ideas. (against ip 9)(word report 13). This allowed for laws to be formed to protect creations of the mind. It is not the idea that is being protected, but the physical form of the idea (for example, the idea of a vampire romance cannot be protected, but a specific novel such as Twilight, about a vampire romance can be protected legally). There are two main categories of intellectual property – industrial property (registered designs, patents and trademarks) and Copyright (literary works like publications, artistic works, performances, radio and television). Intellectual law generally has the following functions, even though there are differences between the various types. (pdf 3- 115) • Protecting the rights of the creators • Promoting development • Maintaining the order of business competition Registered Designs protect the design in two ways – with regard to the appearance or by the features... ... middle of paper ... ... we currently handle intellectual property (for example, not acknowledging its existence), and they would be part of a comprehensive pursuit towards a more ethical legal and/or social system. However, abolishing intellectual rights altogether is slightly worrying because there will be a lack of remuneration for creators who have put a lot of time and effort into their work, and their work can be easily copied without implications. Or is this just so worrying because it is something we are not yet used to? A world where everyone can combine ideas and share. (http://classes.soe.ucsc.edu/cmpe080e/Spring05/projects/ip/). A world where great ideas can be improved on even more without having to limit oneself due to intellectual property laws. As Jean-Nicolas Bouilly said “Whatever we possess becomes of double value when we have the oppoertunity of sharing it with others”.

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