Mapping the Intangible Economy

Abstract

<p>Hanns Ullrich’s constantly evolving work visualizes Europe as a legal notion for the post-war order, and competition as a means to secure the very basis of this order. It is a stirring account of big ideas, of fundamental legal problems put into a broader conceptual framework. These range from deliberations on the function of the Internal Market, through the European Court system and the interplay of intellectual property, technology, and competition, to reflections about industrial policy, standardization and public procurement. Because of its enduring importance for the 21st-century student of these themes, Hanns Ullrich’s work is like a steady stream of content, a scrolling, incessantly refreshing present, comprised of compelling accounts confronting contentious doctrinal issues that culminate in vigorous debates about the regulation of an emerging new economy. Picking up on several aspects of that stream, this contribution seeks to identify some of the broad questions posed by 21st-century marketplaces—without having all the answers. As legal scholarship embarks on working out responses to these questions, Hanns Ullrich’s influential thinking will help steer us in the right direction.</p>