Intellectual property rights in China are often juxtaposed against the United States in relation to how the existence of private ownership of ideas worthy of protection by state-run mechanism are often absent. As is noted, the emergence of intellectual property has been linked to the emergence of printing technology. Simply now, there is the ability to copy either an idea or physical product without attribution or payment to be made to the originator of that product. There are different ideas amongst cultures as the idea that this is something that must be protected by the state itself. Recognizing this as a legitimate outcome is made more difficult when a producer from a nation with significant intellectual property rights shifts production to a nation with less stringent protections of intellectual property rights. Used a juxtaposition to Chinas is the United States. This nation has, in general, quite significant levels of legal protection for intellectual property. Yet this ideal is more at the cultural level, born out in state protection policies. These ideas, until recently, were not present in Chinese culture. Recognizing this fact is important to understand the total picture when making a comparison between the two nations. Additionally, intellectual property rights have been notably beneficial for the state, even if they are not the direct beneficiaries of the protections. Protecting this right consequently encourages innovation. Proponents of a universality of intellectual property rights say it is necessary in a globalized market where states with varying degrees of domestic policy are effectively nullified if the protections are not the same across the board.
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