知识产权法和公司的界限.pdf

HARVARD LAW SCHOOL
John M. Olin Center for Law, Economics, and Business
Discussion Paper No. 480
UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA LAW SCHOOL
Law and Economics Research Paper Series
Research Paper No. 04-19
Intellectual Property Law and the
Boundaries of the Firm
Oren Bar-Gill
Gideon Parchomovsky
June 2004
This paper can be downloaded without charge from the
Social Science Research. Network Paper Collection at
/abstract=559195
.edu/programs/olin_center/
JEL Classification: D23, K11, L22.




INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY LAW AND THE BOUNDARIES OF THE FIRM



Oren Bar-Gill* and Gideon Parchomovsky**





Abstract

Arrow’s disclosure paradox implies that information that is not afforded legal protection
cannot be bought or sold on the market. This paper emphasizes the important relationship
between the paradox of disclosure and the boundaries of the firm question. Only legally
protected inventions, ., patented inventions, may be traded; pre-patent stages of the
innovation process may not. Consequently, by force of law, rather than by the guidance
of economic principle, pre-patent innovation must be carried out within the boundaries of
a single firm.



Keywords: Boundaries of the firm, disclosure paradox, intellectual property law.


* Harvard University, the Society of Fellows, and Harvard Law School, the John M. Olin Center for Law,
Economics and Business.
** University of Pennsylvania Law School.
This paper greatly benefited ments and criticisms by Ian Ayres, Lucian Bebchuk, Omri
Ben-Shahar, Yochai Benkler, James Bessen, Chaim Fershtman, Zohar Goshen, Oliver Hart, Josh Lerner,
Robert Merges, Eric Posner, Ariel Porat, Mark Ramseyer, Edward Rock, Chris Sanchirico, Peter
Siegelman, Omri Yadlin and seminar participants at Boston University and Penn. We thank Efrat ia
for excellent research assistance. Finally, we thank the John M. Olin Center for Law, Economics and
Busines