Abstract
The self-replicating nature of seeds poses a challenge for the traditional configuration of Intellectual property rights, as it overlooks the boundary that prevents amateurs from replicating the technology embedded on it. The territorial scope of IP rights and the lack of an international consensus regarding the exhaustion of IP right aggravates the issue. This loophole enhances the segmentation of markets through license agreements of patents and plant varieties which multinationals employ to drag resources all along the market chain, by demanding payment of fees to each shackle. This might constitute an infringement of Competition Law regimes which is undertaken differently according with the tradition of each country but always with the aim of protecting the well-functioning of their internal market.
Highlights
Seeds are encapsulated plant embryos; their nature is to grow into new plants if there are appropriate conditions
This paper aims to evaluate how different jurisdictions have had address the anticompetitive practices employed to enlarge the scope of national IP rights and capture fees through license agreements
The first section of this paper describes the scene in the international market of seeds, how it became such a concentrated market, the decisive role of IP rights within it and the interplay between patent holders, plant breeders and farmers within the market of seeds
Summary
Seeds are encapsulated plant embryos; their nature is to grow into new plants if there are appropriate conditions. License agreements can be concluded between parties located in different countries for the conduction of just one or several of the activities required to introduce a gene into a cultivable seed They may include ancillary provisions restricting the business of the licensee by fencing the territory where it is allowed. The first section of this paper describes the scene in the international market of seeds, how it became such a concentrated market, the decisive role of IP rights within it and the interplay between patent holders, plant breeders and farmers within the market of seeds It will be explained why multinationals impose restrictions on international markets; to approach case law from the European Union, United States, Brazil and Argentina, searching for different solutions to this issue.
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