Monopolizing data, extracting value: Industry 4.0 technologies and intellectual monopoly in healthcare

This study aims to bridge two previously disconnected literatures – Industry 4.0 (I4.0) and Intellectual Monopoly (IM) – by examining their convergence in the healthcare sector. Using a mixed-method approach combining PRISMA-based article selection, bibliometric mapping, and thematic analysis, we reveal overlapping conceptual structures despite divergent terminologies. We then propose an I4.0–IM Convergence Framework, showing how core I4.0 technologies enable knowledge enclosure, data-driven rent extraction, and monopolistic control. The framework illustrates how digital infrastructures shape global value chains, reinforce asymmetries, and raise policy challenges. Health 4.0 emerges as a paradigmatic case in which data-intensive infrastructures and intangible asset accumulation underpin both technological innovation and market concentration. By integrating political economy and technological perspectives, the study advances interdisciplinary understanding and offers guidance for governance strategies to mitigate monopolistic tendencies in the digital transformation of healthcare.