FROM UTILITY TO HUMAN FLOURISHING: THE CAPABILITIES APPROACH, YILMAZTEKIN’S COPYRIGHT THEORY, AND GEIGER’S ACCESS RIGHT FRAMEWORK
Öz
This article examines three interrelated theoretical frameworks for rethinking copyright law: the capabilities approach developed by Amartya Sen and Martha Nussbaum, the normative scholarship of Hasan Kadir Yılmaztekin on post-TRIPs copyright, and the access right framework articulated by Christophe Geiger. The central argument is that copyright must be understood not merely as an economic incentive mechanism but as an instrument for supporting genuine human capabilities and enabling cultural participation. Yılmaztekin contends that the post-TRIPs copyright regime has systematically strengthened rightholders at the expense of users and developing countries, and that a human rights perspective — grounded in capabilities theory — provides the normative resources to correct this imbalance. Geiger argues that copyright exceptions are not bare derogations from a rule of exclusivity but constitute positive, enforceable rights of users, and that rightholders bear affirmative obligations to ensure access. The article demonstrates that both approaches share Nussbaum's capability of 'senses, imagination, and thought' as a common philosophical anchor for reforming copyright's normative foundations. In the digital context, these frameworks generate concrete policy prescriptions regarding mandatory copyright exceptions, open access mandates, and the privileged institutional position of libraries and universities. The article concludes that the convergence of capabilities theory, Yılmaztekin's post-TRIPs critique, and Geiger's constitutional access right framework offers a robust and coherent alternative to utilitarian copyright orthodoxy.
Anahtar Kelimeler
Kaynakça
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