Work

From protecting texts to protecting objects in biotechnology and software: a tale of changes of ontological assumptions in intellectual property protection

Year: 2011

Type: article

Abstract: Both software and agricultural inventions have recently become patentable. Previously, software was protected by copyright, while agricultural inventions were protected by plant breeders’ rights. Here we argue that legislation on intellectual property is shaped by ontological considerations (i.e. ideas about the object to be protected), and we propose that the introduction of patenting in software and biotechnology marks a change from protecting a text to protecting an object. However, this change rests on outdated assumptions about the relationship between structures and functions in both fields. Such an ontological perspective gives us a deeper understanding of recent transformations in intellectual property regimes.

Source: Economy and Society

DOI: 10.1080/03085147.2011.607363

Authors: Andrea Bonaccorsi, Jane Calvert, Pierre-Benoit Joly

Institutions: University of Edinburgh, Sciences en Société

Language: English

Topic: Intellectual Property Law

Subfield: Law

Field: Social Sciences

Domain: Social Sciences

Open Access status: green

Funder: Economic and Social Research Council

Awards: G1726331997, G6973449111