Let's talk about intellectual property.

I'm conflicted on some forms of IP. While I am for the abolishment of the state, I do think that the loss of some of these protections could be detrimental.

Types of IP:
Patents: Obviously antithetical to a free society. These are government created monopolies, and could not exist without the government's monopoly on violence.
Trade-secrets: The most valid of all IP. Tort law in a polycentric system would continue to protect these. No employee under an NDA has the right to steal trade-secrets and sell them. Similarly hacking or utilizing espionage to obtain trade secrets is a violation of real property rights.
Trademark: This is where I am conflicted. I am against state enforcement, but I think it would be a pretty rotten system if a competitor could flood the market with counterfeit goods sold under the branding of a firm that has worked hard to build consumer trust, if the true firm has no recourse. How can firm reputation be protected without trademark?
Copyright: Similar to trademark I am conflicted here. If an author writes a book, and instantly any competitor can start selling the exact same book, it seems that authors would be unable to make any money and would have little way to benefit from their work, and we could see a death of writing for profit. How can the free market incentivise authors, artists, etc. without copyright protection?

What am I missing on the above?

Posted Oct 3, 2016, 4:45 PM UTC · edited

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