International Technology Transfer & Intellectual Property Rights

Peter Magic, University of Texas

9/19/2008
(Original Publish Date: 11/30/2003)

Underdeveloped countries are at a huge technological disadvantage in the global high tech economy today. They have immeasurably fallen behind developed countries in both acquired technology and domestically developed technology. Furthermore, the lack of protection of intellectual property (IP), which governments of developing countries view as necessary to bring their economy and social welfare up to speed with the industrialized world, is at great odds with the goals and moral convictions of the developed countries. Developing countries share a belief that industrialized countries wish to maintain their monopoly over advanced technology by demanding that developing countries implement strong intellectual property rights (IPR).