Intellectual Property Rights and Innovation in Developing Countries: Evidence from India

by Siddharth Sharma and Antara Dutta

There have been large increases in R&D spending after patent law reforms in India, suggesting that intellectual property rights matter to innovation in developing countries. India, along with several other developing countries, signed the Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property (TRIPs) Agreement in 1994, and became obligated to amend its domestic intellectual property rights laws within ten years. The paper address the issue of whether the TRIPs led to changes that increased the level of and the capacity for innovation for domestic firms in India.

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