Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®
Articles 1 - 1 of 1
Full-Text Articles in Law
Pledging Patents For The Public Good: Rise And Fall Of The Eco-Patent Commons, Jorge L. Contreras, Bronwyn H. Hall, Christian Helmers
Pledging Patents For The Public Good: Rise And Fall Of The Eco-Patent Commons, Jorge L. Contreras, Bronwyn H. Hall, Christian Helmers
Utah Law Faculty Scholarship
Commons and pledge structures have been used to achieve various goals of patent holders, including the advancement of social and philanthropic aims. The article analyzes the formation and structure of a widely acclaimed effort to pool patents for the promotion of green/clean technologies – the Eco-Patent Commons (EcoPC) – as well as its actual impact on technology diffusion and the factors leading to its demise in 2016. We combine quantitative econometric techniques with qualitative interviews to paint the most complete picture of this innovative and ambitious effort to date. Our quantitative results show that the patents contributed to the EcoPC …