International Business: The New Realities, 5th Edition

Infringement of Intellectual Property: A Global Problem

1. 15.7 Understand infringement of intellectual property, a global problem.

We have seen that working with independent partners through contractual arrangements provides the focal firm with only moderate control over foreign partners. Safeguarding intellectual property and foreign operations under contractual arrangements is usually challenging. Laws that govern contractual obligations are not always clear, conflicts arise due to cultural and language differences, and contract enforcement abroad is often costly or unattainable.

Infringement of intellectual property is the unauthorized use, publication, or reproduction of products and services protected by a patent, copyright, trademark, ...