The Public and Private Domains

Abstract

This article argues that intellectual property law contains an in-built bias that protects the intangible assets of companies while failing to recognize traditional knowledge as protectable subject matter. The rapid globalization of high-level intellectual property rights (IPRs) minimum standards is certain to exacerbate the situation. The main reason why IPRs are unfair is not that they are explicitly discriminatory but that they treat all knowledge in the world as the intellectual commons except that which is protected under patent or other mainstream IPRs. This situation is unjust to indigenous people and contrary to the interests of everybody except those who profit from exploiting traditional knowledge unfairly.