Synergetic Interaction between Intellectual Property and Consumer Protection : A Pragmatic Law & Economics Proposal

Since the adoption of «Parte Veneziana», a Venetian law of 1474 which made the first attempt to protect inventions through a form of patent, granting an exclusive right to an individual, and which is considered the root of the Intellectual Property system, IP has been developed as an instrument to both control the quality of the material made public and to regulate trade, preventing works from being pirated3. Nowadays, intellectual creations are both cultural goods and commercial goods, protected to the same extent as tangible property and shaped in terms of usage rights.Nowadays, information systems and communication networks are determining factors of social and economic development. The huge quantity of information available on communication networks creates new opportunities – and means – of business, thanks to the development of new products and services and innovative forms of commercial advertising.Thus, a new “balanced integration” of intellectual property and consumer/user protection would be useful to create a rebalanced level playing field for the knowledge economy