Summer 1997 NBER Workshop on "Intellectual Property in Pharmaceuticals and Biotechnology"

A one-day session was on Tuesday, July 29, 1997 held part of the National Bureau of Economic Research's 1997 Summer Institute in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

This is the third of a series of initiatives on this topic under the aegis of the NBER. This session—which focused on the role of intellectual property protection in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries—was divided into three parts. The first part consisted of two papers examining the reform of pharmaceutical patent policy, and the impact of these policies on firms’ research activities and product market behavior. The second section examined ways in which the traditional system of intellectual property is being challenged by recent innovations in the biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries. The final part consisted of a panel discussion about future developments featuring several distinguished practitioners who specialize in this area.

The session was organized by Jean Lanjouw and Josh Lerner.