ELZABURU

Fashion Law. Patent protection in the fashion sector (III)

The ELZABURU firm has had the pleasure of collaborating with the Thomson-Reuters Aranzadi publishing house on the work Fashion Law, a pioneering treatise in Spain on fashion law, which was presented on April 16.

With these small weekly summaries, the ELZABURU professionals who have collaborated on the work offer us a brief overview of their contribution:

Patent protection in the fashion sector

Politics had its French Revolution in 1789; Fashion, on the other hand, has been transformed thanks to many small revolutions over the last 200 years. From changes in clothing to home clothing or technical fabrics. Each of these transformations has created new and valuable intangibles. Through this chapter of “Fashion as a patentable invention” we aim to reflect the clear impact of innovation within the world of fashion. In history we find relevant examples of many patents and would we be able to imagine our daily lives without inventions such as zippers, velcro or bras for women? Some of the most representative examples today that demonstrate that Patents are a powerful instrument in the fashion world They are such as Gore-Tex®, waterproof shoes from Geox, bleaches from Procter & Gamble Company or Suberis fabric from Grindi SRL., among others.

Nowadays, thanks to awareness and concern for the environment, it is being achieved with greater force that in recent years fashion innovation is focusing on the creation of new fabrics that generate less impact on the ecosystem. Examples of this change can be seen in new biodegradable filaments made from bacteria and fungi or in a prototype of Puma shoes made with leather made from pineapple, among others.

Throughout the entire chapter, the current of the so-called "smart clothing", which has managed to provide certain functionalities to the products of the sector beyond the uses that could be expected, trying to achieve innovations that make the lives of users more comfortable. From t-shirts that measure temperature and heart rate, Human Sensor clothing that changes color to reflect the amount of pollution in the air around the wearer, odor-resistant, wrinkle-resistant and stain-resistant clothing, clothing or practice bags sports that permanently incorporate a deodorant device, to Nike's HyperAdapt sneakers, which have the ability to adjust to the user's foot and also tie themselves. Marty McFly's scene, in which Doc offers him special sneakers that adjust themselves to his feet in Back to the Future, is now a closer reality.

The conclusion of this chapter is that we must consider patents as a powerful commercial instrument since The patent gives its owner the exclusive right to prevent others from manufacturing, using, offering for sale, selling or importing his product or process.. This exclusive right will be decisive for companies to prosper in a commercial environment as demanding and dynamic as the fashion sector, allowing them to obtain a solid market position and competitive advantage.

Author: Marina Reig

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La Fashion Law series It is made up of the following deliveries:

1. The protection of brands in the fashion sector (23.04.2018)

2.The protection of designs in the fashion sector (30.04.2018)

3.Patent protection in the fashion sector (07.05.2018/XNUMX/XNUMX)

4. Protection of fashion through copyright (21.05.2018)

5.Image rights in the world of fashion (28.05.2018)

6.Data Fashion: privacy and data protection issues (04.06.2018)

7.FAshion Law. Counterfeiting and piracy in fashion (11.06.2018)

8.Fashion Law. Exhaustion of rights in the fashion sector (18.06.2018)

9.Corporate reputation in the fashion sector (25.06.2018)