Intellectual property as a complex adaptive system

This Chapter discusses the common angle to all contributions of this book. All share the understanding that intellectual property (IP) must be treated as a complex adaptive system (CAS). We examine IP structures, collaborations, distribution models and law-making in order to show the complex and interdependent relationships in which IP operates. This focus on IP as a complex adaptive system is necessary in order to address the problem of the “Valley of Death”: many inventions developed in the laboratory or research institutes are not brought to the market, arguably due to the complex relationships that lie at the heart of innovation. We discuss complex adaptive systems as applied to IP and the phenomenon of the “Valley of Death”, as the embedding of the following Chapters.