Please join us for the 2006 Princeton University – Microsoft Intellectual Property Conference, Creativity & I.P. Law: How Intellectual Property Fosters or Hinders Creative Work, May 18-19 at Princeton University. This public conference will explore a number of strategies for dealing with IP issues facing creative workers in the fields of information technology, biotechnology, the arts, and archiving/humanities.
The conference is co-sponsored by the Center for Arts and Cultural Policy Studies, the Program in Law and Public Affairs, and the Center for Information Technology Policy at the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs and funded by the Microsoft Corporation, with additional support from the Rockefeller Foundation.
The conference features keynote addresses from Lawrence Lessig, Professor of Law at Stanford Law School, and Raymond Gilmartin, former CEO of Merck, Inc. A plenary address will be delivered by Sérgio Sá Leitão, Secretary for Cultural Policies at the Ministry of Culture, Brazil.
Six panels, bringing together experts from various disciplines and sectors, will examine the following topics:
- Organizing the public interest
- The construction of authorship
- Patents and creativity
- Tacit knowledge and the pragmatics of creative work: can IP law keep up?
- Compulsory licensing: a solution to multiple-rights-induced gridlock?
- New models of innovation: blurring boundaries and balancing conflicting norms
We expect the conference to generate a number of significant research initiatives designed to collect and analyze empirical data on the relationship between intellectual property regimes and the practices of creative workers.
Registration for the conference is strongly encouraged as space is limited for some events. For additional information and to register, please visit the conference web site. Online registration will be available beginning Friday, April 14.
We hope to see you in May.
Stanley N. Katz, Director, Center for Arts and Cultural Policy Studies
Paul J. DiMaggio, Research Director, Center for Arts and Cultural Policy Studies
Edward W. Felten, Director, Center for Information Technology Policy
This sounds like a very good conference. But it looks as though it’s going to be a very crowded one. When I went to book us a room at the Nassau Inn, all that was left was a suite at $440/night, which is a little rich for academics. Fortunately the Nassau Club had a room available, so we’ll still be able to come. Perhaps the conference site should provide some alternative hotels.