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Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

2006

Intellectual Property Law

Olufunmilayo B. Arewa

Articles 1 - 4 of 4

Full-Text Articles in Law

Strategic Behaviors And Competition: Intangibles, Intellectual Property And Innovation, Olufunmilayo B. Arewa May 2006

Strategic Behaviors And Competition: Intangibles, Intellectual Property And Innovation, Olufunmilayo B. Arewa

Olufunmilayo B. Arewa

Intangibles such as intellectual property rights are an increasingly important source of value for businesses today. This increasing importance has significance for the uses of intangibles by companies and the mechanisms and behaviors by which companies extract value from intangibles. The manners in which holders of intellectual property rights wield such rights can play an important role in shaping the effective functioning of intellectual property frameworks. Although intellectual property rights may serve as important tools of innovation, empirical evidence shows that in many industries intellectual property protection is not a primary means by which innovation is protected. Moreover, increasingly pervasive …


Copyright On Catfish Row: Musical Borrowing, Porgy & Bess And Unfair Use, Olufunmilayo B. Arewa Apr 2006

Copyright On Catfish Row: Musical Borrowing, Porgy & Bess And Unfair Use, Olufunmilayo B. Arewa

Olufunmilayo B. Arewa

Treatment of musical borrowing under current copyright standards is far too often inequitable. This is evident in the works of George Gershwin, who, for a number of reasons, was able to borrow freely from existing traditions, works and artists, copyright the works he produced that reflected such borrowings, and then restrict future borrowings and reinterpretations of his works. The operation and the uses of copyright in the specific instance of George Gershwin’s musical practice reflect actual uses of copyright in the musical arena and demonstrates some ways in which current copyright frameworks may not adequately contemplate actual practices of music …


Trips And Traditional Knowledge: Local Communities, Local Knowledge, And Global Intellectual Property Frameworks (Trips Symposium), Olufunmilayo B. Arewa Feb 2006

Trips And Traditional Knowledge: Local Communities, Local Knowledge, And Global Intellectual Property Frameworks (Trips Symposium), Olufunmilayo B. Arewa

Olufunmilayo B. Arewa

Intellectual property treatment of traditional or local knowledge is a major issue of contention today, particularly since the implementation of the TRIPs Agreement, which establishes minimum levels of intellectual property protection for members of the World Trade Organization. Discourse surrounding local knowledge is highly charged with accusations of "piracy" from Western countries countered with allegations of "biopiracy" from Third World countries. Flowing beneath the surface of this dialogue are multiple levels of historical experience. Intellectual property frameworks were formed in the nineteenth century during a period when evolutionary views of the development of human societies were paramount. Local knowledge was …


From J.C. Bach To Hip Hop: Musical Borrowing, Copyright And Cultural Context, Olufunmilayo B. Arewa Dec 2005

From J.C. Bach To Hip Hop: Musical Borrowing, Copyright And Cultural Context, Olufunmilayo B. Arewa

Olufunmilayo B. Arewa

Musical borrowing is a pervasive aspect of musical creation in all genres and all periods. Copyright doctrine does not adequately reflect the reality of such borrowing. Instead, copyright doctrine incorporates notions of Romantic authorship that assume independent and autonomous authorship and even genius in the creation of original musical works. This individualistic and autonomous vision of musical authorship, which is central to copyright law, has deemphasized the importance and continuity of musical borrowing practices generally. The tension between conceptions of musical production and actual music practice is particularly highlighted in the case of hip hop music, which is now the …