From the adulated author of antiquity to the powerful modern publisher

Abstract

In the modern world, intellectual property regulation needs to tackle the challenges posed by new technology, new devices and new ways of consuming culture. This is not the first time that intellectual property has faced a challenge of this nature: in early modern Europe, the invention of the printing press revolutionized how cultural creativity was understood and regulated. Intellectual property regulation is central to the relationship between creator and consumer. Below we summarize changes made to intellectual property regulation since the advent of the printing press, considering the attitudes held at different historical periods and how intellectual property is legally, socially and economically conceptualized in different countries.