INTRODUCTION
India’s fashion industry has a rich history dating back thousands of years, as well as understanding that the fashion for stitched clothing has been popular there since antiquity.
With advancements made abroad, India’s garment and accessories market is expanding quickly in the modern period. The proliferation of homegrown designers, some of whom have recently received acclaim on a global scale, has been a major factor in the fashion industry’s rapid growth in India during the past ten years. The textile industry is the leading segment in this regard making India second highest exporter of textile in the world.
The value of fashionable items to fashion businesses is of billion dollars, which is why they want to safeguard their brand equity in order to maximise their profits in the future. However, there is always a risk of misappropriation when names and tags are used by different manufacturers and vendors in a nation. This results in manufacturing of duplicate or fraudulent goods and services and the exploitation of expensive and exclusive brand names for their marketing and sale. Such actions with bad motives and inaccurate descriptions lead to violations and damage the reputation of particular brands and constitute mismanagement. Therefore, brands are very conscious about their reputation in the market.
RELEVANCY OF IPR IN FASHION INDUSTRY
IPR and fashion go hand in hand in any scenario. IPR contends that human intellect is what gives rise to human invention, including fashion. Through conceptual fashion shows and clothing collections, fashion designers and artists demonstrate their artistic talent. In several nations, design acts are used to protect designs or patterns that are embroidered or printed on textiles. More specifically, designs that incorporate two- or three-dimensional shapes, patterns, ornamentation, or colour combinations are protected in India under the Design Act, 2000 this design act can be used to protect a design, preventing unauthorised parties from producing fake clothing and using it for commercial gain without the designer’s consent.
RELEVANCY OF COPYRIGHT:
The apparel sector is crucial to copyrights as well. An “original artistic work” may be protected by an artist in India under the copyright law if it has been expressed in a tangible medium for more than 60 years. However, it is pertinent to note that if an artistic work is already protected under the designs act, it cannot be protected under the copyright act. The fashion industry has witnessed several technological advancements over the years. The introduction of novel manufacturing techniques, such as software-based design tools, 3D printing techniques, laser printing techniques, equipment to support large-scale textile manufacturing, and business models based on software, has fueled innovation in the fashion sector over the years. Such innovations enhance the distinctiveness and reputation of a specific brand. Additionally, a few of companies have used the trade secret designation to legally safeguard their innovations or business processes.
RELEVANCY OF DESIGN
Designs are essential to the fashion industry. Under section 2(d) of the design act of 2000 in India, the term “designs” is defined as features of shape, configuration, pattern, ornament, or composition of lines or colours applied to any object by any industrial technique or means. Any article that is either two-dimensional or three-dimensional may use a design under the provisions of this section. Therefore, the designs act guarantees the protection or registration of textile designs that may be purely aesthetic in nature. It is important to remember that, unlike copyright protection, the act only permits the protection of designs if they are registered.
RELEVANCY OF PATENTS
It’s interesting to note that current fashion industry advancements have attempted to combine technology with fashion. Patents typically and generally protect technical innovations that are truly new, novel in character, and are a unusual creation. Therefore, when thinking about fashion technology and the fashion sector, patent is not an IP tool that would come to someone’s mind so easily. Technical advancements are still one way to give the textile manufacturer a competitive edge and due to this makes patents relevant in this sector.The awarding of patents for fashion technology is subject to some substantive and administrative problems. It is restricted to fresh designs that must be innovative and non-obvious, which is rather difficult to show.
RELEVANCY OF TRADEMARK
The fashion sector relies heavily on trademarks. Trademark rules may in some cases restrict unauthorised parties from producing fake goods and knockoffs. An apparel company’s brand equity can be greatly enhanced by trademarking a word, symbol, pattern, or colour scheme that is unique to it. Through the efficient implementation of existing trademark laws, businesses may bring legal action against parties who may have exploited similar marks for commercial purposes.
CONCLUSION
The Indian fashion industry is expanding across continents like it has done throughout time.
Every season, the fashion industry makes sizable investments to provide innovative and new looks. Despite this substantial expenditure, fashion designers are hesitant to safeguard their intellectual property. However, a common justification for not registering fashion designs is that the brief product life cycle—often no more than one season lasting between six and twelve months—does not warrant the considerable time and money involved. Each situation calls for a different analysis of the justifications for registering a new design. The act of registering a design should help to both combat dishonest competitors who attempt to replicate it. Additionally, at least initially, design protection is not often a significant cost burden. The easiest strategy to stop others from copying the design of fashion items with a long shelf life may be protected with the help of IP.
The fashion industry is driven by creativity and by the intellectual capital invested in it. Protecting that intellectual capital in the form of IP assets serves to boost income through sale, licensing, and commercialization of differentiated new products, to improve market share, raise profit margins, and to reduce the risk of trampling over the IP rights of others. An organization’s value in the eyes of investors and financing institutions can be increased through effective management of IP assets in a business or marketing plan.
