Rethinking Intellectual Property
A Radical Guide to the Past, Present, and Future of the Ownership of Ideas
Rethinking Intellectual Property
A Radical Guide to the Past, Present, and Future of the Ownership of Ideas
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Description
This is the updated and expanded edition of the only radical, multidisciplinary, international introduction to intellectual property in its socio-economic contexts.
Bringing together voices from law, sociology, economics, political science, and cultural studies from across the Global North and Global South, experts and activists Mat Callahan and Jim Rogers offer a detailed history and analysis of IP before asking critical questions designed to underscore its importance in the broader struggle between capital and the commons. What are the broader implications of IP, whether for agribusiness, pharmaceuticals, education, or entertainment? Is IP law a fundamental pillar of our culture, or has it been used to protect and assert the ownership of, and thus limit, the spread of ideas and creativity?
With a chapter structure moving from historical and theoretical foundations to industry-specific conflicts and policy analysis, this book covers the breadth and depth of IP areas, including patents, copyrights, trademarks, and trade secrets, as well as emerging issues such as digital rights and biotechnology.
Key features include:
- voluminous, up-to-date case studies, both Western and non-Western;
- an extensive, jargon-busting list of abbreviations of specialized or technical terms;
- a new chapter on copyright and socialism;
- revisions and updates accounting for the seismic impacts of artificial intelligence.
This is a foundational must-read for all researchers, students, and activists interested in critical analyses of IP laws and policies--not just their legal frameworks, but also their broader social, economic, and political implications.
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Table of Contents
1. Why Intellectual Property? Why Now?
Mat Callahan and Jim Rogers
2. Running through the Jungle: Introduction to Intellectual Property
Mat Callahan
Section I. Historical Contexts and Conceptual Frameworks
3. Intellectual Property Rights and their Diffusion around the World: Towards a Global History
Colin Darch, University of Cape Town, South Africa
4. The Political Economy of Intellectual Property
Michael Perelman, California State University, USA
5. I Am because I Own vs. I Am because We Are
Mat Callahan
Section II. Terrains of Conflict and Terms of Engagement
6. Owning up to Owning Traditional Knowledge of Medicinal Plants
Josef A. Brinckmann, Research Fellow at Traditional Medicinals, Inc., California, USA
7. Using Human Rights to Move beyond Reformism to Radicalism: A2K for Schools, Libraries, and Archives
Caroline B. Ncube, University of Cape Town, South Africa
8. Meet the New Boss, Same as the Old Boss: Copyright and Continuity in the Contemporary Music Economy
Jim Rogers
9. Free Software and Open Source Movements from Digital Rebellion to Aaron Swartz: Responses to Government and Corporate Attempts at Suppression and Enclosure
Paul McKimmey, University of Hawaii, USA, with a coda by Bob Jolliffe, University of Oslo, Norway
Section III. Law, Policy and Jurisdiction
10. Rethinking the World Intellectual Property Organization
Debora Halbert, University of Hawaii, USA
11. What is Intellectual Property?
Blayne Haggart, Brock University, Ontario, Canada
12. Piracy, States and the Legitimation of Authority
Mat Callahan
13. Intellectual Property and Socialism
Josef A. Brinckmann and Mat Callahan
Conclusions
14: Summary and Concluding Remarks
Mat Callahan and Jim Rogers
Product details
| Published | Dec 24 2026 |
|---|---|
| Format | Ebook (Epub & Mobi) |
| Edition | 2nd |
| Pages | 256 |
| ISBN | 9781350619005 |
| Imprint | Bloomsbury Academic |
| Publisher | Bloomsbury Publishing |
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