The Use of Intellectual Property Right Bundles by Firms in Copyright Intensive Industries

This paper contributes to the complementarity theory of Intellectual Property rights (IPRs) and seeks to explain how companies active in copyright industries bundle different types of formal IP protection in order to effectively protect their original works and maximise economic returns from their creative activity. Based on a unique set of data covering IP activity of European companies operating in copyright based industries, a number of regression models have been developed to identify factors explaining the use of the various protection mechanisms. Statistical analysis indicates that 10% of companies in copyright industries use other forms of IP protection. Regression analysis further demonstrates that copyright companies employ other forms of IP protection more frequently than non-copyright companies. However there is an observed strong size effect, with larger copyright companies having larger probability to use other forms of IP more frequently than small companies. The paper provides support for complementarity between copyright and other forms IP given company specific characteristics.