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This is an examination of the origins and impact of the agreement on Trade-Related Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) negotiated during the Uruguay Round of GATT talks. The principal theme is that the TRIPS agreement is not in the best interests of the poorer countries, and that its imposition on them by the richer countries has more to do with the exercise of political and economic power than with the positive economic benefits the agreement's supporters claim it can deliver. To support this assertion the book critically examines the economic evidence regarding the impact of intellectual property rights on such important variables as export performance, foreign investment, and economic growth. The author provides a political economic analysis of why the poorer countries acceded to the TRIPS agreement, illustrated with case studies of two important industries where the struggle over intellectual property is especially strong: pharmaceutical and agricultural biotechnology sectors. Designed for use in advanced undergraduate and graduate courses in international political economy and international relations theory, the book offer a radical view of the process of globalization.

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CHOICE Review

Intellectual property has been a key issue in the international economy for some time, with broad implications for gains from comparative advantage and trade as well as the legal and economics aspects of international commercial diplomacy. The agreement on Trade-Related Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) was produced at the end of negotiations of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT). Richards (Indiana State Univ.) argues that TRIPS is loaded in favor of the developing countries and against the interests of the poor in that it worsens their terms of trade by forcing them to pay higher prices for imports containing intellectual property, for which the owners demand a return. The argument is extended to the view of TRIPS as a tool of capitalist power and exploitation, minimizing the view that intellectual property is the product of creativity, entrepreneurship, and capital investment in research and development, for which a financial return is necessary and appropriate. Separate chapters deal with the background of TRIPS, the nature and ideology of intellectual property in law and economics, and the role of the state, with specific applications to the pharmaceutical and agricultural sectors. This is a useful addition to the debate on an increasingly important topic in international economics. ^BSumming Up: Recommended. College and university library collections. I. Walter New York University

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DONALD G. RICHARDS is professor of economics at Indiana State University where he teaches primarily international economics and political economy. He is the author of numerous articles on the international political economy of poorer countries. He has a particular interest in Latin America and especially the Southern Cone region of South America; he has worked as economic development policy consultant in Paraguay