Globalization is a Catalyst for Change in Intellectual Property Systems: Case Studies in India and China

The recent forces of increasing globalization have forced India and China to reform their intellectual property stance to become competitive in the new global economy. Prior to the 1970s, both India and China had intellectual property systems that were flawed and relatively powerless to provide any real protections to individual inventors. This paper argues that the recent overhauling of the intellectual property system in both India and China are a direct result of globalization. The surge in globalization following the conclusion of World War II provided the competitive environment necessary to initiate change within the systems governing intellectual property in both countries. 2. Background Throughout history, each generation has experienced unique political, economic, and social forces. Interplay between these dynamic elements form the centerpiece of establishing any nation state. Striving to meet the basic needs and comforts of their citizens, these states for the most part remained free-standing. However, this century has been marked by unprecedented technological changes that enable a worldwide connectedness. While this idea referred to courier mail or travel in the past, nowadays the worldwide web, mobile communications, and mass media link individuals. The economic implications of such global associations are serious. Economic progress has often been tied to technological progress. Ensuring such progress necessitates an effective patent system, which essentially is progress appearing in law. Developing nations have confronted the predicament of economic progress with little success. In the case of India and China, decades of feeble patent policy and intellectual property laws blocked such progress. Only recently due to the arm of globalization have these nations seriously pursued a strong patent system, planting the seeds for future economic success