Determinants of Intellectual Property Rights Protection in Asian Developing Countries

In the knowledge economy, intangible assets and intellectual property rights are increasingly recognized as a substance of competencies. As an emerging market of the world, Asian developing countries experience various issues related to intellectual property rights protection. Meanwhile, the current literature on intellectual property rights with an emphasis placed on Asia is quite scarce. Therefore, this study explores the determinants of the strength of intellectual property rights in 25 Asian developing countries during the 11-year period from 2006 to 2016. Using the fixed effects model (FEM) and random effects model (REM) with the Hausman test, the paper discovers the positive impacts of economic growth, trade openness, and WTO participation on the protection level of intellectual property rights. Unexpectedly, education is a negative determinant of intellectual property rights protection. This study aims to demonstrate the overall status quos of intellectual property rights regimes across Asian developing countries, so provide an important theoretical background for innovators, governments, and policymakers to design optimal intellectual property rights strategies.