Abstract

For at least a century fashion piracy has been practiced on an industrial scale, with levels of

intellectual property protection low in most nations for fashion design (Dahln, 2012). Efforts

over the years to enact copyright protection in the fashion industry have ensued, none as of

yet proving successful (Raustiala & Sprigman, 2009). France and the US have taken

different paths in their approaches to protecting fashion designs (Dahln, 2012).

This review aims to give a summary of the design protections afforded to the fashion

industry in the twenty first century and the cases for and against. The relationship between

creativity and property rights and the impact they have on different segments of the industry

will also be discussed.

Furthermore, several important themes relating to property protections are explored in

greater detail and include current intellectual property protections available to the fashion

industry and where these fit in relation to different geographic locations and market

segments. Consumers will also be discussed, how does copying affect them and what role

do trends play? Do weak intellectual property laws have a positive or negative effect on

consumers? Finally, challenges that the fashion industry faces in implementing intellectual

property protections in the world we live in today will also be explored. Are the challenges

the fashion industry faces unique to fashion or are the applicable to other creative industries.

The proposed research design for Major B will also be explained. The proposed research

design, data collection techniques, who will be contributing in the collection of data, access,

limitations and budgets will all be further discussed.

2 Introduction & Rationale

2.1 Introduction

The fashion industry provides many benefits to todays society including creativity,

innovation, entrepreneurship, employment as well as being a contributor to the global

economy (Holton 2014). Fashion is also associated with economic and societal theories

relating to consumption and conformity as well as providing insights into social class, ideals

and changes (Hemphill & Suk, 2009). In the USA 20,000 people were employed in the

fashion design industry in 2006, furthermore consumer spending on fashion is approximately

$250 billion (Holton, 2014).

Fashion can be viewed as an ever-changing open game of imitation (Liu, 2014). The

fashion industry is a global industry that is large and vibrant, yet the core of this industry,

design is not (Raustiala & Sprigman, 2009). Design piracy operations have emerged to

supply low-cost copies of luxury designer items in response to increasing consumer demand

for designer products (Liu, 2014). Highly profitable is the global trade for counterfeit apparel,

shoes, bags and sunglasses, with the majority of imitation products produced in China

(Dahln, 2012). Even though there are several intellectual property legal tools that can be

formally applied, protection for fashion products and designs is relatively weak (Barrre &

Delabruyre, 2011).

The terms copying and piracy may have very different meanings depending on which firm is

asked, there are several terms used within in the industry to refer to imitation and copying

strategies; adaptation, copyists, inspiration, homage, remixing, referencing, close

copying, borrowing, counterfeits, participation in common trends, fakes and knockoffs

(Barrre & Delabruyre, 2011).

There are many common inputs that a creator may use such as; movies, architecture and

design, the mood of the time, art, nature or popular personalities (Barrre & Delabruyre,

2011). A creator is creative because his interpretation is unique; his talent is idiosyncratic

(Barrre & Delabruyre, 2011, p. 320). Heritage of a firm or creator is sustained through

creativity, also contributing to collective heritage (Barrre & Delabruyre, 2011).

2.2 Rationale

To examine the current research that is available on intellectual property protections and to

explore whether or not there is a gap in the research. This is to be achieved by looking at a

variety of research articles as to whether or not it would be valuable/beneficial to the fashion

industry and consumers if intellectual property protections were to be implemented.