IP 101: Intellectual Property Management In the Digital Age

4th March 2019 – Recent advances in technology have drastically reduced the time it takes to design, develop and manufacture products. E-commerce platforms, in particular, have created new opportunities for up-and-coming companies to reach otherwise inaccessible markets and for established brands to create new relationships with their existing customer base.

But there’s a flip side to all this progress. The tools that have given companies new opportunities for growth have also made it easier for counterfeiters to target them. Meanwhile, the explosion in social media and e-commerce sites has paved the way for counterfeiters to easily steal brand identity elements and use them to disseminate fake wares to unsuspecting consumers across the world. In fact, the U.K. Intellectual Property Office found that an alarming 17.5% of online transactions made on social media in 2017 were for counterfeit goods.

The sheer volume of fakes on the market also means that many brands have little to no insights into the number and scale of entities that are damaging their reputation and stealing their sales. As a matter of fact, Amazon recently issued its first-ever warning about counterfeit products in its earning report, reflecting increased concern over the problem. So, how do brands facing a high number of counterfeits leverage classic IP rights and technology to implement an effective online IP strategy and prevent brand erosion?

Many brands are streamlining processes by enforcing their IP rights, using technology-based solutions that rely on artificial intelligence (AI) and detect potential incidents on behalf of right owners. However, to be effective, the best AI-driven systems should take a holistic approach to brand protection by consolidating tools and actions on a single platform, providing full visibility on all the different types of infringements negatively impacting a company’s reputation such as black, grey and white market goods.