The much-spoken of TRIPS Agreement - or Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights - is often cited as key factor which cannot be violated in the quest for access to cheaper medicines. But what does TRIPS actually say? Law analyst Jonathan Berger offers a brief history of TRIPS and how pharmaceutical giant Pfizer and computer king IBM pushed for World Trade Organisation approval for such an agreement. He argues that TRIPS balances protection of intellectual property rights with the right of people to access essential medicines.