Copyright and Economic Theory - 9781840643121

Copyright and Economic TheoryFriends or Foes?\nAuthor(s): Richard Watt\nFormat: Hardback\nPublisher: Edward Elgar Publishing Ltd, United Kingdom\nImprint: Edward Elgar Publishing Ltd\nISBN-13: 9781840643121, 978-1840643121\nSynopsis\nIn the past, economists have not always been able to agree on the idea that copyright is an efficient way of protecting cultural intellectual property. Indeed, many economists argue that copyright is not even necessary. In Copyright and Economic Theory a rigorously extensive yet simplified economic theory of copyright piracy is presented, and used to analyse important aspects of intellectual property transactions including the royalty contract, optimal copyright law, and copyright collectives. The author also analyses important areas of discussion in copyright, such as how can it be that a certain degree of piracy is beneficial, not only socially, but also for copyright holders and producers of originals? Are linear royalty contracts optimal? How ma.