To answer you first question, because historically "monopoly" is the term used. To have exclusive rights to produce a particular object is a monopoly over that

To answer you first question, because historically "monopoly" is the term used. To have exclusive rights to produce a particular object is a monopoly over that production. One of the earliest instances of patent law is the "Statute of Monopolies". https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Statute_of_Monopolies https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Statute_of_Monopolies To answer your second question, all ownership is a restriction on the actions of others, in some way. If you own a house, what that means is that everybody else is restricted from entering that house without permission. If you own a copyright monopoly, it means that everybody else is restricted from making copies of particular books without your permission. Where I would draw the line between "artificial" and "natural" monopolies is in how straightforward those restrictions are to apply. It is very easy to maintain restrictions on wearing a particular hat or entering a particular house. On the other hand, it is very hard to monitor all copies of a book to ensure that nobody is making additional copies of it. For one, exclusivity is a function of it being a physical object. For the other, exclusivity is not an inherent trait of the book, and is instead bolted on through legal measures.