Evaluation of Language Regimes : Theory and application to multilingual patent organisations.

The Evaluation of Language Regimes -- Editorial page -- Title page -- LCC data -- Table of contents -- List of figures -- List of tables -- List of abbreviations -- Acknowledgements -- Introduction -- Setting the scene -- Chapter 1. The need for evaluation in language policy -- 1.1 Historical overview -- 1.1.1 Evaluation in language policy and planning: A missing link -- 1.1.2 Language policy evaluation: An outline -- 1.2 Language policy and individuals' welfare -- 1.2.1 Language policy as public policy -- 1.2.2 Linguistic laissez-faire and language policy -- 1.2.3 Linguistic environments, welfare and language policies -- 1.3 The role of evaluation in language planning -- Part I. Theory -- Chapter 2. The criteria of efficiency and fairness -- 2.1 Efficiency and fairness in economics -- 2.1.1 Efficiency -- 2.1.2 The Pareto criterion and the compensation principle -- 2.1.3 Fairness -- 2.2 Departure from the benchmark: Market failures and public policies -- 2.2.1 Market failures -- 2.2.2 Public policies -- 2.3 Techniques for evaluating the efficiency of public policies -- 2.3.1 Cost-benefit analysis -- 2.3.2 Cost-effectiveness analysis -- Chapter 3. Multilingual communication as an object of evaluation -- 3.1 Language as a public good -- 3.2 Evaluating the efficiency of language policies -- 3.2.1 The limits of cost-benefit analysis for language policy evaluation -- 3.2.2 Effective communication as an object of study -- 3.3 Assessing the fairness of language policies -- Chapter 4. The evaluation process -- 4.1 Organising policy evaluation -- 4.1.1 Evaluation as organisational learning -- 4.1.2 Designing evaluation -- 4.1.3 Implementing evaluation -- 4.2 Evaluating language regimes -- 4.2.1 On the concept of language regime -- 4.2.2 Problem analysis -- 4.2.3 Design -- 4.2.4 Implementation -- Chapter 5. Indicators.

5.1 Policy, social and economic indicators -- 5.2 Principles of indicator design -- 5.2.1 Designing indicators -- 5.2.2 Typologies of indicators -- 5.2.3 Assessing the quality of indicators and indicator systems -- 5.3 Existing language policy indicators -- 5.4 Measuring the diversity of language regimes -- Part II. Application to multilingual patent organisations -- Chapter 6. Multilingualism and patents -- 6.1 Intellectual property -- 6.2 Patents -- 6.2.1 Characteristics -- 6.2.2 The rationale for patents -- 6.3 Costs, effectiveness and fairness of the language regimes of patent offices -- 6.3.1 Assessing costs -- 6.3.2 Assessing effectiveness -- 6.3.3 Assessing fairness -- 6.4 Evaluating the language regime of patent offices -- 6.5 Innovation, patenting and translation requirements -- Chapter 7. The language regime of the PCT system -- 7.1 The international patent system -- 7.1.1 Historical insights -- 7.1.2 Patent statistics as indicators of innovation -- 7.2 The World Intellectual Property Organisation -- 7.2.1 Structure -- 7.2.2 Official languages and language services -- 7.3 The language regime of the PCT system -- 7.3.1 An international multilingual network -- 7.3.2 A multilingual provider of technical knowledge -- 7.4 Multilingualism in the PCT system -- 7.4.1 Current trends in international applications -- 7.4.6 Languages used in filing: global dynamics and policy outcomes -- 7.4.3 Languages of publication as carriers of technical knowledge -- 7.4.4 Business strategies and applicants' language choices -- 7.5 Efficiency and fairness of multilingualism in the PCT system -- 7.5.1 Evaluation at the filing stage -- 7.5.2 Evaluation at the publication stage -- Chapter 8. The language regime of the EPO -- 8.1 The European Patent Office -- 8.1.1 History and structure -- 8.1.2 Procedures and language regime: The Euro-direct route.

8.1.3 The Euro-PCT route -- 8.1.4 The London Agreement -- 8.2 Multilingualism in the EPO -- 8.2.1 The EPO as a multilingual provider of technical information -- 8.2.2 Current trends in European patent applications and grants -- 8.3 Evaluating the language regime of the EPO -- 8.3.1 The issue of "standing" in patent services -- 8.3.2 The distributive effects of the language regime of the EPO -- 8.3.3 Exploring alternatives -- Conclusions -- Chapter 9. Summary and perspectives -- 9.1 The rationale for this book -- 9.2 Theoretical contributions -- 9.3 Methodological advances -- 9.4 Empirical findings -- 9.4.1 Explaining language regimes of multilingual patent organisations -- 9.4.2 Unpublished figures -- 9.4.3 Three comparative analyses -- 9.5 Concluding remarks and research perspectives -- Annexes and bibliography -- Appendices -- 1. Impact of Translation on Patent Creation: Cost-effectiveness Analysis -- Cost-effectiveness analysis -- 2. Optional steps in the PCT procedure -- 3. Advantages of the PCT system over the Paris system -- 4. Top 12 PCT applicant countries per field of technology -- 5. List of the EPC contracting states sorted by date of accession -- References -- Index.

Building on existing analytical frameworks, this book provides a new methodology allowing different language policies in international multilingual organisations (or "language regimes") to be compared and evaluated on the basis of criteria such as efficiency and fairness. It explains step-by-step how to organise the evaluation of language regimes and how to design and interpret indicators for such evaluation. The second part of this book applies the theoretical framework to the evaluation of the language policy of the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) division of the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) and the European Patent Office (EPO). Results show that an increase in linguistic diversity of the language regimes of patent organisations can both improve the efficiency of the patent system and lead to a more balanced distribution of costs among countries. This book is a resource for scholars in language policy and planning and for policy-makers in the international and European patent system.

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Electronic reproduction. Ann Arbor, Michigan : ProQuest Ebook Central, 2024. Available via World Wide Web. Access may be limited to ProQuest Ebook Central affiliated libraries.