An arms race in intellectual property is killing innovation
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War is a favourite metaphor in discussions about intellectual property (or IP) law, and it’s easy to understand why. In litigation, patents are wielded like weapons: Owners of intellectual property use them to attack competitors, wringing big settlements out of infringement claims, and those companies that find themselves unarmed rush to acquire defensive patents to deter such onslaughts. But the martial metaphor also applies on a larger scale to countries, not just companies.

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