Linkages, contests and overlaps in the global intellectual property rights regime

Abstract

Intellectual property rights (IPRs) ultimately delineate the way in which knowledge is created, owned, controlled and diffused, domestically and now globally. They have always been contested because knowledge is both a form of capital and a public good, but these contests have become more acute since the WTO TRIPs Agreement came into force in 1995. As a result of new frames and linkages propelled by various actors between IPRs and other issue-areas, the current intellectual property regime has become complex and somewhat inconsistent. This article contributes to a better understanding of the concrete mechanisms and processes through which various global regimes come to overlap with each other in the area of IPRs, of the actors that are involved in these processes, as well as of the consequences of such developments for the governance of IPRs and global governance more generally.