Fashion and Related Intellectual Property Rights Issues

Abstract

There is a substantial effort to create an intellectual capital in the domain of fashion and further its value addition. Fashion design is a form of art dedicated to the creation of clothing and other lifestyle accessories. Due to inadequate awareness on the subject, not only the individual fashion designers but many small and medium-sized enterprises do not appreciate protecting such intellectual assets. Now days, in the business environment, intellectual assets have proved the competitive advantage, including those in the fashion industry. Many fashion hoses earning a lot by commercializing their IPR in their fashion creations by licensing. Licensing means renting or leasing of an intangible asset. It is a process of creating and managing contracts between the owner of a brand and a company or individual who wants to use the brand in association with a product, for an agreed period of time, within an agreed territory.