Intellectual Property and Information Wealth.

Until recently, issues of intellectual property were relegated to the experts—attorneys, legal scholars, rightsholders, and technology developers who wrangled over interpretations and enforcement of copyright, patent, and trademark protections. But in today's knowledge-based economy, intellectual property protection has taken on fundamentally new proportions, as a subject of urgency for businesses (whose survival depends on protection of their intangible assets) and as a subject of cultural importance that grabs front-page headlines (as the controversy over Napster and high-profile revelations of plagiarism, for example, have illustrated). This landmark set of essays brings new clarity to the issues, as societies around the world grapple with the intricacies and complexities of intellectual property, and its impact on business, law, policy, and culture. Featuring insights from leading scholars and practitioners, Intellectual Property and Information Wealth provides rigorous analysis, historical context, and emerging practical applications from the public, private, and non-profit sectors.

Volume 1 focuses on protections to novels, films, sound recordings, computer programs, and other creative products, and covers such issues as authorship, duration of copyright, fair use of copyrighted materials, and the implications of the Internet and peer-to-peer file sharing. Volume 2 explains the fundamental protections to inventors of devices, mechanical processes, chemical compounds, and other inventions, and examines such issues as the scope and limits of patent protection, research exemptions and infringement, IP in the software and biotech industries, and trade secrets. Volume 3 looks at the protections to distinctive symbols and signs, including brand names and unique product designs, and features chapters on consumer protection, trademark and the first amendment, brand licensing, publicity and cultural images, and domain names. Volume 4 takes the discussion to the global level, addressing a wide range of issues, including not only enforcement of IP protections across borders, but also their implications for international trade and investment, economic development, human rights, and public health.

Peter K. Yu is Associate Professor of Law and Founding Director of the Intellectual Property and Communications Law Program at Michigan State University College of Law. He also holds appointments in the Asian Studies Center and the Department of Telecommunication, Information Studies and Media at Michigan State University. He speaks at professional and academic forums around the world on issues of intellectual property, media and communications law, and international business and trade. Frequently quoted and cited in the popular press, he is the author of many articles and book chapters, and author or editor of several books, including International Intellectual Property Law and Policy, The Marketplace of Ideas, and Russian Media Law and Policy in the Yeltsin Decade.