Intellectual property license contracts: reflections on a prospective UNCITRAL project

IP licenses are the leading lady of the information age. The economic and strategic significance of this contract archetype have grown exponentially over the past 40 years. Under this glaring spotlight, it has become progressively more apparent that the legal framework governing these transactions i...

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Main Author: Tosato, Andrea
Format: Article
Published: University of Cincinnati College of Law 2017
Subjects:
Online Access:https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/47568/
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author Tosato, Andrea
author_facet Tosato, Andrea
author_sort Tosato, Andrea
building Nottingham Research Data Repository
collection Online Access
description IP licenses are the leading lady of the information age. The economic and strategic significance of this contract archetype have grown exponentially over the past 40 years. Under this glaring spotlight, it has become progressively more apparent that the legal framework governing these transactions is ill-suited to the role that they play in the modern digital environment. The applicable norms are scattered throughout diverse areas of the law, rendering a holistic appraisal onerous, and causing both doctrinal underdevelopment and legal uncertainty. Moreover, a comparative analysis of IP licensing regimes across jurisdictions reveals a jarring lack of alignment that severely hinders international transactions. The United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) has been contemplating the possibility of a project in this area of the law for over a decade. Though Member States have battled lingering reservations, support has been increasing steadily among practitioners and academics, and is verging on achieving critical mass. This paper provides the necessary theoretical infrastructure for this initiative by expounding its possible scope, content and form. The objective is not to articulate or advocate a single, concrete proposal, but rather to identify the categories of legal issues that UNCITRAL Member States would face in the elaboration of this project and lend color to the types of decision-making processes required to attain consensus solutions. On the basis of this analysis, a strategy to advance this project to its next phase is proposed.
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spelling nottingham-475682020-05-04T19:13:25Z https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/47568/ Intellectual property license contracts: reflections on a prospective UNCITRAL project Tosato, Andrea IP licenses are the leading lady of the information age. The economic and strategic significance of this contract archetype have grown exponentially over the past 40 years. Under this glaring spotlight, it has become progressively more apparent that the legal framework governing these transactions is ill-suited to the role that they play in the modern digital environment. The applicable norms are scattered throughout diverse areas of the law, rendering a holistic appraisal onerous, and causing both doctrinal underdevelopment and legal uncertainty. Moreover, a comparative analysis of IP licensing regimes across jurisdictions reveals a jarring lack of alignment that severely hinders international transactions. The United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) has been contemplating the possibility of a project in this area of the law for over a decade. Though Member States have battled lingering reservations, support has been increasing steadily among practitioners and academics, and is verging on achieving critical mass. This paper provides the necessary theoretical infrastructure for this initiative by expounding its possible scope, content and form. The objective is not to articulate or advocate a single, concrete proposal, but rather to identify the categories of legal issues that UNCITRAL Member States would face in the elaboration of this project and lend color to the types of decision-making processes required to attain consensus solutions. On the basis of this analysis, a strategy to advance this project to its next phase is proposed. University of Cincinnati College of Law 2017-10-20 Article PeerReviewed Tosato, Andrea (2017) Intellectual property license contracts: reflections on a prospective UNCITRAL project. The University of Cincinnati Law Review, 86 (4). ISSN 0009-6881 (In Press) intellectual property licenses copyright patents trade marks contracts international law UNCITRAL
spellingShingle intellectual property
licenses
copyright
patents
trade marks
contracts
international law
UNCITRAL
Tosato, Andrea
Intellectual property license contracts: reflections on a prospective UNCITRAL project
title Intellectual property license contracts: reflections on a prospective UNCITRAL project
title_full Intellectual property license contracts: reflections on a prospective UNCITRAL project
title_fullStr Intellectual property license contracts: reflections on a prospective UNCITRAL project
title_full_unstemmed Intellectual property license contracts: reflections on a prospective UNCITRAL project
title_short Intellectual property license contracts: reflections on a prospective UNCITRAL project
title_sort intellectual property license contracts: reflections on a prospective uncitral project
topic intellectual property
licenses
copyright
patents
trade marks
contracts
international law
UNCITRAL
url https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/47568/