Joseph Stiglitz, Nobel laureate and former Chief Economist at the World Bank, has written a remarkable article on the role of intellectual property in the developing world:

"Intellectual property is important, but the appropriate intellectual-property regime for a developing country is different from that for an advanced industrial country. The TRIP’s scheme failed to recognize this. In fact, intellectual property should never have been included in a trade agreement in the first place, at least partly because its regulation is demonstrably beyond the competency of trade negotiators."

His positions are not radical - at least not in my world - but it's exceedingly rare to see such a high-profile economist take them. I've already written to ask if I can distribute this article at the next meeting on the WIPO Development Agenda.
.:Link:.