It is common knowledge that intellectual property rights lie at the heart of the global economy. But in what way exactly? The literature in the field has brugeoned dramatically in recent years, and we have a sufeit of work that either focuses on narrow aspects or sweeps over broad legal regimes from the perspectives of particular stakeholders. Here for the first time is a panoramic but detailed view of the world's intellectual property system that embraces socio-economic, cultural, and technological development in its scope, clarifying the pitfalls and challenges that the sy.stem presents even as it promises to improve the quality of life on our planet.