The value of Intellectual Property Rights in brand management · that can be described as new rules...

ThevalueofIntellectualPropertyRightsinbrandmanagementLauriAnttonHirsiläBachelor’sthesisMay2017DegreeProgrammeinMusicandMediaManagement

Description

AuthorHirsilä,LauriAntton

TypeofpublicationBachelor’sthesis

Date08.05.2017Languageofpublication:English

Numberofpages48

Permissionforwebpublication:x

TitleofpublicationThevalueofintellectualpropertyrightsinbrandmanagement

DegreeprogrammeDegreeProgrammeinMusicandMediaManagement.

SupervisorKreusPiaAssignedby

Abstract

Thevalueofintellectualpropertyasacompanyassetisacrucialpartofbrandmanagement.Theobjectiveofthethesiswastoexplorethevalueofintellectualpropertyinbrandmanagement.Thegloballevelofcounterfeitedproductsandpiracyiscausingmassivelossesforbrands.Togetherwithmarketingactionsandbrandmanagement,intellectualpropertyrightsshouldbeseenasaninvestmentinmaintainingacompany’scompetitiveadvantage.

Thetheoreticalfoundationwasbuiltontopicalliteratureandarticlesonbrandmanagement,intellectualpropertyrightsandstrategicmanagement.Theresearchapproachinthethesiswasqualitative.Theprimarydatawascollectedbyusingsemi-structuredinterviews,andtheinterviewswereanalyzedbyusingcontentanalysis.Theintervieweeswerechosenwiththeaimtocollectinsightsintothecurrenttrendsoftheindustry.Theyrepresentedexpertisefromthefieldofintellectualpropertyrights,especiallytrademarksandbrandmanagement.

Thefindingsofthestudyindicatethatmanagingintellectualpropertyisseenasanecessityforcompetitivebrandmanagement.Thehighlevelofcompetitiondrivescompaniestodevelop,upgradeandprotecttheirbrandsinordertomaintaintheircompetitiveadvantage.Asaconclusion,itcanbestatedthateffectivebrandmanagementstartswithbrandprotection.Brandprotectionshouldbeamandatorypartofdailybusinessoperations.

Keywords/tags(subjectshttp://vesa.lib.helsinki.fi/)Intellectualpropertyrights,trademark,brandmanagement,strategicmanagement.

Miscellaneous

3

TekijäHirsilä,LauriAntton

JulkaisunlajiOpinnäytetyö

Päivämärä08.05.2017Julkaisunkieli:Englanti

Sivumäärä48

Verkonjulkaisulupamyönnetty:x

TyönnimiThevalueofintellectualpropertyrightsinbrandmanagementImmateriaalioikeuksienarvobrändijohtamisessa

KoulutusohjelmaDegreeProgrammeinMusicandMediaManagement.

TyönohjaajaKreusPiaToimeksiantaja

Tiivistelmä

Tavoitteenaopinnäytetyössäolitutkiaimmateriaalioikeuksienarvoabrändinhallintaan.Nykypäivänäimmateriaalioikeudetnähdäänkilpailuetunasekäarvokkaanatyökalunabrändijohtamisessa.Kuitenkinmyösväärennöksiäjapiratismionkasvanutvoimakkaasti.Kansainvälinenväärennettyjentuotteidenjapiratisimintasoaiheuttaabrändeillesuurettappiot.Yhdessämarkkinoinninjabrändijohtamisenkanssaimmateriaalioikeudettulisinähdäinvestointina,jollaylläpidetäänsekävahvistetaanbrändinkilpailuetua.Työntietoperustarakennettiinajankohtaisistastrategisenjohtamisen,brändijohtamisenjaimmateriaalioikeuksienkirjallisuudestasekäartikkeleista.Tutkimuksessakäytettiinlaadullistalähestymistapaa.Ensisijainenaineistokerättiintekemälläpuolistrukturoidullahaastattelulla.Haastattelutanalysoitiinkäyttäensisällönanalyysia.Haastateltavatedustivatosaamistajakokemustaimmateriaalioikeudessa,erityisestitavaramerkeissäjabrändijohtamisessa.Tutkimuksenhavainnotosoittavatettäimmateriaalioikeuksienhallintaonvälttämätöntäkilpailukykyisessäbrändijohtamisessa.Kiristyväkilpailuajaabränditkehittämäänjapäivittämääntuotteitajapalveluitaan,sekäsuojaamaannesäilyttääkseenkilpailuedun.Johtopäätöksenä,voidaantodetaettätehokasbrändijohtaminenalkaabrändinsuojauksella.Brändinsuojaaminentulisiollapakollinenosa-alueliiketoiminnanpäivittäistätoimintaa.

Avainsanat(asiasanat)Immateriaalioikeudet,tekijänoikeus,brändijohtaminen,strateginenjohtaminen.

Miscellaneous

1Contents

1 Introduction....................................................................................................2

2 Theoreticalbackground..................................................................................4

2.1Thestrategicroleofabrandandbrandmanagement...............................................7

2.2Strategictoolsforbrandmanagement....................................................................11

2.3TheroleofIntellectualPropertyRightsinBrandManagement..............................14

3 Methodology.................................................................................................20

3.1Researchproblemandresearchquestion...............................................................21

3.2Interviewasadata-collectionmethod....................................................................23

3.3Interviewdesign.....................................................................................................24

3.4Dataanalysis..........................................................................................................25

4 Findings.........................................................................................................27

4.1Trademarks............................................................................................................28

4.2Brandsintellectualpropertymanagement..............................................................29

4.3Thevalueofresearchanddevelopment(R&D)inbrandmanagement....................30

4.3Counterfeitsandpiracy..........................................................................................30

4.5Chinaasanexamplemarket...................................................................................31

4.6Brand-ownerperspective.......................................................................................32

5 Discussion......................................................................................................33

5.1Summaryoffindings...............................................................................................34

5.2Limitations.............................................................................................................36

6 ConclusionsandFutureSuggestions..............................................................37

References............................................................................................................39

Appendices...........................................................................................................43

APPENDIX1:InterviewquestionsforKolehmainenandMikkola..................................43

APPENDIX2:InterviewquestionsforAhonen...............................................................45

Figures..................................................................................................................48

Figure1:Frombrandawarenesstofinancialvalue.......................................................48

Figure2:Brandtriangle................................................................................................48

Figure3:TheFrameworkforbrandmanagement.........................................................48

Figure4:Brandawarenesspyramid..............................................................................48

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1 Introduction

AccordingtotheGlobalIntellectualPropertyCenter,globalintellectualproperty

theftsincounterfeitandpiratedgoodsaregrowingatanalarmingspeed.

Counterfeitsdonotanymoreonlymeansellinghigh-endhandbagsineverystreet

corner.Counterfeitedgoodsandtheirsaleshavecreatedasocalledsophisticated

blackmarket,anindustrywherecounterfeitsareproducedandsoldinalmostall

categoriesofgoods.Asresultofthisnewindustry,evenasinglecounterfeited

productcancausegreatdamagetoabrandthathasbeenbuiltforyearstosucceed.

(GlobalIntellectualPropertyCenter,2016).

Wecansaythattodayeverybusinessandbrandisatrisk.Inaddition,withregardto

brandprotection,thecriticalintellectualpropertyassetsforbusinesses,basedon

whichconsumersrecognizethebrandandtsproduct,aretrademarksandcopyright.

IthasbeenestimatedthatIntellectualpropertytheftscostdomesticcompanies

between200and250billiondollarsayearinlostrevenues,andthishasresultedina

lossof750,000jobsonlyintheU.S.(GlobalIntellectualPropertyCenter,2016).In

addition,accordingtoDr.JochenM.Shaefer,intheyear2009thefastestgrowing

counterfeittradewasonline.(WIPOMagazine.2011.)

Unauthorizedusageoftrademarkoccurswhenacompanyusespartorevenallof

anotherbrand’selements.(Zaichowsky,2006).Themostinsolentformsoftrademark

infringementsarecaseswherethecounterfeitsorcopiesaremadeidenticalwiththe

originalbrand,withoutany”tweaking”ofthebrandelements.(Chaudhryetal.

2005).In2013,theFinnishdesignerfabricbrandMarimekkoannouncedthattheir

fabricdesign”Metsänväki-ForestDwellers”designedin2007wasacopyofan

Ukrainianartist’sworkpublishedin1963withatitle”RatonherTravels”.Inaddition

tothefabricdesign,thesamedesignwasusedonthefuselagesoftheFinnishairline,

Finnair.(HelsinginSanomat,2013)Thus,plagiarismisobviouslycausingharmforthe

Marimekkobrand.

Inordertosurvivetoday,acompanyholdingawell-knownandvaluablebrand

shouldassumeandbeawarethattheirbrandmightalreadyhavebeeninfringedby

counterfeitsandpiracy.Brandsshoulddevelopandalsosystematicallyimplement

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anti-counterfeitingstrategiesandfittheseintheirregularpractices.(Global

IntellectualPropertyCenter,2016).

AccordingtoMorrinetal.(2006),trademarkinfringementscanhavelong-term

negativeeffectsontheoriginalbrandinmanyways.First,theimitator’sbrand

qualitybecomeseasilyassociatedwiththeoriginalbrand,whichreducesthequality

perceptionoftheoriginalbrand.Secondly,theoriginalbrandcanlosesaleswhen

consumersstartbuyingthecounterfeitedbrand.Consumersmayalsostartseeing

thecounterfeitedbrandastheoriginal.Thethirdaspectoccursinsituationswhere

twotrademarksorbrandsdealinthesameproductcategory.Thissituationmight

leadto”anegativespillover”.Fourthly,whentwobrandsarevisuallysimilar,

consumersaremorelikelytocreateattributesfromonebrandtoanother.(Warlop&

Alba,2004).Thedilutionandconsumerconfusionduetotrademarksimilarities

reducewhenconsumershavestrongerfamiliaritywiththeoriginalbrand.Higher

familiriatywithanoriginaltrademarkprotectsthetrademarkformdilution.(Morrin

et.al.2006)Anotherstudyalsodefinesthatconsumerswhohavelowerpreferences

forluxurybrandsareexposedtocounterfeits.(Wilcoxet.al.2009.)Moreover,

peoplebuycounterfeitsbecausetheylikethegenuinebrandbutcannotaffordit.

(Gentryet.al.2009.)

Anotheraspect,accordingtoHelemLom,isthatbrandistheykeyassetforbusiness

value-creation,andtodaytherearestillmanyentrepreneurswhoarenotconvinced

aboutsettingbrandingasatoppriority.Lomexplainsthisbyasking”Whatistheuse

ofmakingmajorinvestmentsintodevelopingqualitygoodsandservicesifthat

qualityreputationcannotbecapturedanddevelopedintheformofabrandimage?”

Brandscanbequitespecificallydefined,butLomaddsthatabrandisalsocomposed

ofitsvariousparts,andtheaddedvaluecomesfromthesynergybetweenthese

partsofthebrand.Brandasaconceptshouldworkasareminderthatitstrademark,

designsandotherintellectualobjectivesshouldbeprotected,andtheintellectual

propertiesworkastoolsfordevelopinganeffectivebrandimage.Thekeyfactorsofa

successfulbrand,accordingtoLom,areclear,specificandcrediblemessages,power

ofdifferentiation,thequalitythatthebrandsymbolizesanditsattractiontothe

targetgroup.Lomhighlightsthedifferentiationpowerasthemostimportantfactor

includingthatthebrandisrecognizable,desirable,credibleandproperly

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communicated.(Lom,2016).

Theaimofthestudywastoexplorethevalueofintellectualpropertyrightsinbrand

management.Thetheoreticalframeworkforthestudywascollectedfromtraditional

literatureandelectronicsourcesaboutbrandmanagement,businessstrategyand

intellectualpropertyrightsasatoolinbrandmanagementstrategy.Theresearch

datawascollectedfromthreesemi-structuredinterviews.

2 Theoreticalbackground

Inthisstudy,thepurposewastoexplorethevalueofintellectualpropertyrightsin

brandmanagement.Thetheoreticalbackgroundinthisfocusesonbrand

management,intellectualproperty,andmorespecificallyontrademarks.

Brandsasawordisoldandhasdevelopedovertheyears.Theearlydefinitionsofa

brandarefromtheWildWestoftheUnitedStates,wherebrandwasusedtomark

anownership,originandquality.Lateritbecameanimportantterminmarketing,

andbrandstartedtobeseenasalinkbetweenanameandaspecificconsumer

benefit.(Kapferer,2012,11).

Interbrandisbrandconsultancycompanyspecializinginbrandstrategy,brand

analytics,brandvaluationandnaming.Interbrand’s”FourAgesofBranding”isa

descriptiveprocessofthedevelopmentofabrand.First,thereistheAgeofIdentity.

Asweknow,brandingstartedasamarkofownership,trustandquality.Overtime,

brandingevolvedintoamoresophisticatedmodelafterWorld-War2,whenthe

marketstartedtofillupfromproductsandservices.Thiscausedaneedto

differentiatefromothersthatwereseenascompetitors.DuringtheAgeofIdentity,

thepurposeofabrandwastoserveasamarketpositioningidentifierbysetting

specificproductsapartfromotherswithverbalandvisualactions.Theseactionsare

stillinavalidpositionwhencreatingabrand.Secondly,theAgeofValuestarted

whenInterbrandconducteditsfirstbrandvaluationin1988.Companiesbegantosee

brandsasvaluableassetsforbusiness.Brandingbecameapartofmarketing,andthe

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termmarketingcostswitchedtoinvestment.ThethirdphaseisdescribedastheAge

ofExperience.Today,brandsareseenasvaluablestrategicassets.Itiscrucialto

understandwhatroleabrandplaysintheconsumers’minds.Theincreasedlevelof

digitaltechnologyandmobiledeviceuserscreatesso-called”categorykilling”

brands,suchasGoogle,FacebookandApple.Thesebrandshaveresetthecustomer

expectationsandraisedthebar.Amassofdata,orbigdataisnotenoughanymore.

Instead,brandsneedtohaveinsightsoftheconsumers’minds.Thecustomers,

empoweredbythesocialmediaofthisage,havemorecontroltheever.Thishas

createdtheworldoftwo-wayconversations,advocacy,influenceandengagement

thatcanbedescribedasnewrulesofbrandingandbrandbuilding(Interbrand,

2016).Asafinalphase,theAgeofYoudescribestheageinwhichwelivenowand

whatisgoingtohappeninthefuture.Digitaltechnologyismoreandmorepartof

everyaspectofhumanlives,andvariouskindsofuserdataiscapturedtoserversand

harddrives.Thereiscomputingeverywhere.Thedatacollectedfromhuman

activitiescreatesnewsupplychainsbyconnectingbusinessestopeopleandpeople

toeachother.Brandsareservingasenablersofbothbusinessandpersonalvalue

creation.Peoplesharepiecesoftheirpersonalbrandsthroughvarioussocialmedia

platforms,whichhascreatedpersonalizedcommercewithpurchasehistory,

locations,eventsandservicesofferedtowhoeverandwhenever.Communication

increases.ThechallengeintheAgeofYouisthatthebrandsneedtoseparatepeople

fromthedatabyuncoveringtheinsightsandthencreatetrulypersonalizedand

curatedexperiences.(Interbrand,2016).

Themainpurposebrandshasnotchangedovercenturies.Brandisstillworkingasa

toolfordifferentiatingandcreatingcompetitiveadvantage.MichaelE.Porterinhis

article”TheCompetitiveAdvantageofNations”(1990),definestheimportanceofa

competitiveadvantageforcompanies.Thecompetivenessofanynationora

demographicunitdependsofitsindustry’sabilitytoinnovateandupgrade.

AccordingtoPorter,theadvantageisgainedthroughpressureandchallengecreated

bythemarkets.(Porter,1990.)Allovertheworld,therearecompaniesandbrands

whichhaveachievedthepositionofamarketleader.Allofthesecompanieshave

specifiedstrategiesthatdifferfromeachotherineveryaspect.However,these

leadingcompanies,whofollowtheirownstrategy,stillhavefundamentallythesame

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characteristicsinuse.(op.cit.p.74).Thehaveachievedtheircompetitiveadvantage

throughinnovationandbyadoptingnewtechnologyornewwaysofdoingthings.

Innovationisaresultofanunusualeffort,andinacompanyitmeansanewbasisfor

competingorfindingmoreeffectivemethodsofcompetingintheoldways.

Innovationandcompetitiveadvantagewillalwaysinvolveinvestmentsinskilland

knowledgeandactionsinotherphysicalassetsandabrandasavaluableasset.

Whenacompanyhasachieveditscompetitiveadvantagethroughaninnovation,it

canbesustainedonlybycontinuousimprovement.Ifacompanystopsimprovingand

innovating,theaggressivecompetitorswilleventuallyovertakethemarket.By

upgrading,thecompanycanmaintainitscompetitiveadvantage.Thechallengeis

thatinnovationalsomeansatimeofchangeinthecompany,andchangeand

innovationareextremelycloselylinked.Again,ifthecompanyisnotreadytochange

fromtheiroldstrategyandorganizationalculture,theinnovationwilldie,andthe

companywillbecomestagnant,andthecompetitorswillbenefitandovertakethe

market.(op.cit.p.74-75).

Strategicbrandmanagement,justlikeanyothermanagementmeansmeasuringand

managingspecificactivitiesandprograms.Kellerdefinesthestrategicbrand

managementprocesswithfourmainsteps.Thefirststepisidentifyingand

establishingabrandposition.Inthepositioningphaseacompanyneedsto

determinewhatthebrandisallabout,andhowthebrandshouldbepositionedin

relationtoitscompetitors.Thestrenghtsandadvantagesovercompetitorscanbe

determinedasthebrand’sPointsofDifference,andpossibledisadvantagesasthe

brand’sPointsofParity.Inbrandpositioningthecorebrandassociationsshouldbe

established.Thecoreassociationsarethebestattributesandbenefitsofthe

consumerassociationsthedescribethebrand’smaincharacteristics.(Keller,2008,

38-39).Thesecondstepisplanningandimplementingbrandmarketingprogramsby

choosingthebrandelements,suchasname,logo,symbols,character,designand

slogan.Whenthebrandelementsareestablished,themarketingactivitiesand

programscanbeimplemented.Byintegratingthebrandwithagoodpositionand

effectivebrandelementsintothecompany’smarketingstrategy,thereisapossibility

tocreatestrong,favorableanduniquebrandassociationsintheconsumers’minds.

(op.cit.p.40)Thirdly,brandperformaceneedstomanagedandinterpreted.A

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commonlyusedmethodfordeterminingorevaluatingbrandpositioningis

conductingabrandaudit.Abrandauditrequiresunderstandingofbrandequity

fromboththecompany’sandconsumers’perspectives.Asinthepreviousstep,the

aimistooptimizestrongandmaintainablebrandassociationsandincreasethebrand

value.Thebrandvaluechainasatoolhelpstotracethevaluecreationprocess,

whichhelpstoundestandthefinancialimpactofthebrandmarketingcostsand

investments.(op.cit.p41).Thefourthstepisgrowthandsustainingthebrandequity.

Thisstepfocusesondefininganddevelopingthebrandstrategyaswellasmanaging

brandequityovertimeandovergeographicboundaries,culturesandmarkets

segments.(op.cit.p.41).

2.1Thestrategicroleofabrandandbrandmanagement

InordertounderstandBrandManagementorotherelementsofbranding,itisvital

todefinewhatabrandis.AccordingtoDavidA.Aaker,”Abrandisadistinguishing

nameand/orsymbolsuchaslogo,trademark,orpackagedesignintentedtoidentify

thegoodsorservicesofeitheroneselleroragroupofsellers,andtodifferentiate

thosegoodsorservicesfromthoseofcompetitors.”(Aaker,1991,7).

AnotherperspectiveaccordingtoChernev,arethethreecommonviewsofabrand:

brandasamarketingtool,brandasamentalimage,brandasasetofproductsand

servicesassociatedwithsameidentity.Moreprecisely,brandasmarketingtool

meansthatmarketersusebrandstocreateanimagewithaspecificmeaninginto

people’smindsthroughtheircompany’sofferings.Asamentalimage,abrandis

seenasaresultofmentalassociationsintheconsumers’mindsbetweenthebrand

anditsofferings.Thethirdview,brandasasetofproductsandserviceswithsame

identity,isdescibedsothatthebrandincludesallprodcutsandservicescarryingthe

samebrandname.Thebrandidentifiesitsofferings.(Chernev,2015,22-23).In

addition,Chernevstatestwocommonviewsofbrandmanagement.Thefirstoneis

brandmanagementasaprocessofmanagingthebrandimage.Thisisachievedby

managingtheimportantaspectsofthebrandandtheproductsandservices.Theaim

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istocreateabrandimageintheconsumers’minds.AccordingChernev,abrand

imageis”thenetworkofthebrand-specificassociationstheexistinpeople’sminds”.

(op.cit.p.23-24).Secondlycomesbrandmanagementasaprocessofmanaginga

company’sofferingsassociatedwithagivenbrand.Inthisview,brandmanagement

isisanactivitytheaimstoextendthemanagementoftheimageofthebrandinthe

consumers’minds.Thisviewalsoincludesmanagingalltheaspectsinthecompany

strategyandtactics.(op.cit.p.24).

AccordingtoKapferer(2012,15),brandequitycanbemeasuredbybrandassets,

strenghtsand,finally,inthebrandvalueasfinancialequity.

Figure1.Brandvalueistheprofitpotentialofthebrandassets,mediatedbymarket

strenght.(Kapferer,2012,15).

Figure1abovevisualizestheprocessandpointsoutthatIntellectualPropertyRights

areoneofthebrandassets.

Brandassetsarethesourcesoftheinfluenceofthebrand.Theseassetsarebrand

awareness,saliency,emotion,image,strenghtoftherelationshipwithconsumers

andintellectualpropertyrights,suchaspatentsandtrademarks.Brandstrenghtis

thespecificpointintimecausedbytheassetsinaspecificmarket.Thestrenghtin

thiscasecanbemeasuredbasedonthebehaviourcreatedbythecompetition.

BRANDASSETSBrandawarenessbrandreputationperceivedbrand

personalityperceivedbrandvaluesreflectedcustomer

imagenarybrandpreferenceor

attachmentpatentsandrights

BRANDSTRENGHTmarketshare

marketleadershipmarketpenetration

shareofrequirementsgrowthrateloyaltyrate

pricepremiumpercentageofproductstradecannotdelist

BRANDVALUEfinancialequity

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Theseindicatorsaremarketshare,marketleadership,loyaltyratesandprice

premium.Brandvalueisdeterminedbyitsabilitytocreateprofit.Inotherwords,a

brandhasnofinancialvalueuntilitstartsdeliveringprofittothecompany.

(Kapferer,2012,15).Thisisnotdirectlyaproblemforthebrand,butamajorkeyfor

thebusiness.

Kapfererstatesthatoneimportantassetforabrandiscustomerswithbrand

loyalty.Today’shighlevelofcompetitionandclustersofgoodsinthesamecategory

drivethebusinessmanagerstocreatingproductsthathavemoreinthemthanjust

themainpurposeofusage.Brandsaddmorevaluetotheirproductswithintangible

values,thatis,bybrandingtheproduct.(op.cit.p.16).

Inaddition,Aaker’sfivelevelsofbrandloyaltyspecifythelevelofattachmenttoa

brand.Onthefirstlevelaretheswitchersorpricebuyerswhosimplybuythe

productwithoutanyemotionalattachment.Secondly,therearethesatisfied,orat

leastnotdissatisfiedandmorehabitualbuyers,whodonotseeanyreasontolook

forotherbrandsinthesamecategory.Asatisfiedbuyerseesswitchingtoanother,

unfamiliarbrandasrisktolosetimeorthealreadyexistingvaluesattachedtothe

familiarbrand.Onthefourthlevel,thecustomerhasalreadycreatedamore

emotionalrelationshipwiththebrand.Thebrandisseenasasymbolofapositive

usageexperienceorquality.Onthefinallevelofbrandloyaltyarethecommitted

buyerswhoareloyaltothebrand.Thebrandrepresentsthecustomersona

personallevelandtheyarewillingtopromotethebrandtoothersinapositiveway.

(Aaker,1991,39-41).

Aakeralsostatesthatbrandloyaltyisavaluableassetinabrandstrategy.Brand

loyaltyaffectsthebrandstrategyinfourways:byreducingmarketingcosts,

enhancingtradeleverage,attractingnewcustomersandgivingleveragetorespond

tocompetitivethreats.(Aaker,1991,48).Brandloyaltyasanimportanttoolinthe

brandstrategyshouldbeconstantlymaintainedandenchanced.(op.cit.p.49-51).

Abrandtriangledescribesamodelthatclarifiesthestructureofbrandmanagement.

Ontopofthetrianglethereisthebrandconceptwiththetangibleandintangible

valuesofthebrand.Secondly,atthebottomtherearethebrandnameandsymbols

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includingthesemioticvariants.Thirdly,thetriangleshowshowtheproductor

serviceisexprerienedatcontactpoints.(Kapferer,2012,10).

Figure2.BrandTriangle(Kapferer,2012).

Whentheequityofthebrandissmall,consumersbuytheproductsorservicesmore

basedonthepriceorfeaturesanddonomindaboutthebrandname.Brandshould

makethecustomersbuythebrandcontiniouslyratherthanmakethemswitchto

anotherbrand.Thistypeofsituationiscommonwhenthebrandmodifiesthe

productpricingoritsfeatures.Sinceabrand’smainvalueistocreateprofit,brand

loyaltyisanimportantissuefortheprofitabilityofthebusiness.Brandloyaltycanbe

translatedquitedirectlyaslong-termsalesfortheupcomingyears.(Aaker,1991,39).

Brandcommitmentisthemostvisibleaspectinstrongbrandsthathavemore

committedcustomers.AccordingtoAaker(1991,46),”onekeyindicatoristhe

amountofinteractionandcommunicationthatisinvolvedwiththeproduct.”

Aaker(1991)statesthatbrandloyaltyhasvalueinthebrandstrategy.Itcanbe

dividedinfourmaincategories:reducedmarketingcosts,tradeleverage,attracting

newcustomers,timetorespondtocompetitivethreats.Reducedmarketingcosts

canbeexplainedsimplythatitislesscostlytoretaincustomersthanattractnew

ones.Amongthenewcustomers,theissueisthelackofmotivationtoswitchfrom

anearlierpreferredbrand.Secondly,thetradeleverageisimportantwhenlauncing

newfeaturesfortheproduct,suchassize,varieties,variationsorextensions.Inthe

Brandconcept(value

proposition)

Brandnameandsymbolssemioticvariants

productorservice

experience

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thirdcategory,attractingnewcustomerscanbedonethroughthesatisfiedcustomer

baseofthebrand.Customerswho”likethebrandcanprovideassurancetoa

prospectivecustomer,especiallywhenthepurchaseissomewhatrisky”.(Aaker,

1991,48).”Seeingaproductbeingusedbyafriendwillgeneratethekindofmemory

linkstotheusecontextandtheuserthatanyadvertisementwouldhavegreat

difficultyindoing”(op.cit.p.48)

Brandscreategoodwill.Overtimesthevisionhaschangedfromtheideathatonly

tangibleassetshadvalueforcompanies.Nowadays,companiesagreethatthemost

importantassetsareintheirintangibleassests,includingintellectualpropertyand

thebrand.Asuccessfullbrandiscreatedbyaneffectivebrandstrategybackedby

innovation.Brands,then,createpsychologicalgoodwillfortheirconsumers,

distributorsandallotherchannels.Goodwillisalsotheaccountable,monetaryvalue

ofthepsychologicalgoodwillthatthebrandhascreatedovertimewithcontinous

marketinginvestmentsandproductdevelopment,suchasinnovationandResearch

&Development.(Kapferer2012,19-20).Inaddition,Chasseret.al.(2010,25)state

thatgoodwillincludesallpartsofabrand.Theseareconsumers’emotional

connection,loyalty,experienceandhistory.Wecansaythatgoodwillstatesthe

reasonswhyconsumersbuyaspecificbrand’sproduts.

2.2Strategictoolsforbrandmanagement

AccordingtoChernevthestrategicpurposeofabrandistocreatemarketvalue.The

tacticalprocessisbranding.Brandingaimstodefinevalueofthecompany’s

offerings,andcreateextentionofbenefitsaboveandbeyondthebenefitscreatedby

theproductsandservices.(Chernev,2015,25).Sincethekeyofabrandistocreate

marketvaluewithidentifiedcompanyofferingsanddifferentiatingfromits

competitors,companiesneedtohighlighttheirbrandstrategyandtacticsinorderto

haveeffectivevaluecreation.(op.cit.p.27-28).Thebrandstrategyisdefiningthe

brandstargetmarketsandalsodeterminesthebrandsvalue-proposition.Value-

propositionsaredefiningthebenefitsthatbrandaimstocreateforitsmarketsina

bigpicture.Themarketsofabrandmanagementcanbedividedinthreemain

categories;targetcustomers,thecompany,companycollaborators.(op.cit.p.29).

Brandmanagementaimstooptimizethesethreeaspectsofvalueastargetcustomer

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value,collaboratorvalueandcompanyvalue.Intargetcustomervaluetheaimisto

identifytheproductsandservicesofferedanddevelopanuniquebrandidentitywich

isextendedovertheproductorservice,inordertoreachpotentialbuyers.(op.cit.p.

29).Companycollaboratorvalueincludessuppliers,distributorsandmarketing

partners.Thisvalueaimstoemphasizethebenefitswhatbrandoffersandincrease

thecustomerdemand.Asfinalthethecompanyvalueiscreatedfromtheprevious

byinfluencingcustomer’sandcollaborator’sbehaviourinawaythatitcreates

revenuesandasepareblecompanyasset.(op.cit.p.29-30)

Figure3.TheframeworkofBrandManagement(Chernev,2015,25).

Chernev(2015,32)statesthatbrandsimpactoncustomersinthreedifferent

aspects.Brandimage,brandvalueandbrand-drivenbehaviour.Brandimageisthe

customersperceptionofthebrand.Itincludesallassocationstowardsaspecific

brand,suchasbrandnameoritsotherelements.Thesecanbealogo,motto,

character,soundmark,designandpackaging.Brandimageisbuiltonthecustomers

BrandStrategy:Targetmarket&valueproposition

BrandTactics:BrandDesign&BrandCommunication

Customerexperience:brandimage

Customervalue:Functional,Psychological,Monetary

Customerbehaviour:Purchase,Usage,Advocacy

Company&collaboratorvalue:monetaryvalue,strategicvalue

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understandingofthebrand.Differentassociationsarebasedonthecustomers

personalsetofvalues,beliefsandexperiences.

Chernevstatesthatbrandvaluesarebasedonthecustomersevalutionofthe

attractivenessofaspecificbrand.Sincecustomersvaluesystems,beliefsand

expreriencestheirperceptionofthebrandvaluevaries.Threetypesofcustomer

valuesbyChernevarefunctional,monetaryandpsychologicalvalues.Functional

valuesallowthecustomertoidentifyspecificofferingsofthebrand.Monetaryvalues

increasetheresalevalueoftheproduct,suchasluxuryhigh-endfashionproducts.

Psychologicalvaluescanbeseenasthemostimportantvaluesinceabrandcan

createvaluebyappealingtoitstargetcustomersonemotionalstage,andallowsthe

customerexpresstheirownidentity.(Chernev,2015,33-34.)

Previouslystatedbrandimageandbrandvaluationsinfluencesthecustomerinmany

waysintheirmarketbehaviour.Positivebrandvaluationsincreasethelikelihoodof

purchaseofspecificbrand,ratherthanendingupbuyingabrandwithnegative

valuations.Positivecustomerbrandexpereriencestendtospread.Statisfied

customermaybecomebrandevangelistssharingthepositivepersonalpromotionof

thebrand.(Chernev,2015,34-35).

AakerdefinesBrandEquityas”asetofbrandassetsandliabilitieslinkedtoabrand,

itsnameandsymbol,thataddtoorsubtractfromthevalueprovidedbyaproductor

aservicetoafirmand/ortothatfirm’scustomers.”Theassetsandliabilitiesinwhich

brandequityisbasedarecategorizedinfollowingfivemaintopics:BrandLoyalty,

nameawareness,perceivedquality,brandassociationsandbrandassets.(Aaker,

1991,15).

AnotherperspectivefromKelleristhatbrandequityisatooltointerpretthe

potentialeffectofdifferentbrandstrategies.Brandequityemphasizesthe

importanceofbrandingasonepartofcompanysmarketingstrategy.However,there

arenogenerallyknowntheoneandonlywayofconceptualizingormeasuringbrand

equity.(Keller,2008,37).

Theaimofbrandingistocreatedifferences.Differentbrandhavedifferentoutcomes

intheiraddedvalueforthebrand.Addedvaluecanbedescibedastheresultofthe

pastmarketingactivityforabrand.Brandvaluecanbecreatedinmanydifferent

14

waysandbrandequitypointsouttheaspectswhatarevaluableforthebrand.

(op.cit.p.38).

”Brandawarenessistheabilityofapotentialbuyertorecognizeorrecallthata

brandisamemberofacertainproductcategory”(Aaker,1991,61).Brandawareness

thecreatesvalueforthebrandinfollowingfourways;anchortowhichother

associationscanbeattached,familiaritywhichleadingtoliking,signalofsubstance

orcommitment,andbrandtobeconsidered.(Aaker,1991,62)

Figure4.BrandAwarenessPyramid.(Aaker,1991,62)

2.3TheroleofIntellectualPropertyRightsinBrandManagement

IfyouwanttobeanotherDonaldTrump,youneedtolearnhowtoappraisereal

estate,becauseyouneedtoknowwhatdrivesvalue.Ifyouwanttobealeaderinany

globalindustry,youneedtounderstandhowintellectualassetsarevalued.Ninety

percentofthevalueofmanycompaniesisdrivenbyintellectualassets.(Gordon

Smith,FranklinPierceLawCenter,andChair,AUS,Inc.)

IntellectualPropertyreferstocreationsofthemind,suchasinventions;”literaryand

artisticworks;designs;andsymbols,namesandimagesusedincommerce.”(WIPO

2016).IntellectualPropertyRightscanberoughlydividedinmaincategories;

copyright,Patents,Trademarks,IndustrialRights,GeographicalIndications.Copyright

Topofmind

Brandrecall

Brandrecongnition

Unawareofthebrand

15

asalegaltermcoverstherightsforcreatorsofliteraryandartisticworks.According

toWIPO”workscoveredbycopyrightrangefrombooks,music,paintings,sculpture

andfilms,tocomputerprograms,databases,advertisements,mapsandtechnical

drawings.(WIPO,2016).

AccordingtoMichaelA.Gollin,Intellectualpropertyisdefinedinvariousways,

dependingwhatisthewayofapproach.Intellectualpropertyisalsodescribedas

”essentiallyassomethingintangible,createdbytheuseofmentalability,towhich

legalrightsattach.”FromthataspectofmanagementGollindescribesIntellectual

property:”BusinesspeopleconsiderIntellectualpropertytobeamanagementtool

forconvertinghumancapitalintovaluebydefiningandcapturingnewknowledge.”

(Gollin,2008,22).

Akeyforstrongbrandisasuccessfulbusinessmodel.However,brandprotectionis

equallyimportant.(Chernev,2015,181).Brand-ownersneedtounderstandthevalue

oftheirintellectualassets,inordertomanagethebrandbetterwithmorestrategic

andcost-effectivedecisions.(Chasseretal.p.21).

AnotherperspectiveaccordingtoAnneH.Chasseristhatbrandleadershipand

brandsintellectualpropertyshouldmaintaintheintellectualpropertystrategyin

company’screativityandinnovationprocessinorderthebrandcangrow.(Brand

Rewired,2010).Inbrandingprocess,everythingthatcanbedeterminedas

intellectualassetareconsideredasintellectualproperty.(BrandRewired,2010,14)

Thetraditionalassetssuchaslogoorslogan,design,distinctcolors,webcontentare

brandintellectualpropertyandthereforecanbeprotected.Intellectualproperty

shouldbeconsideredinverybeginningofthecreativeprocessofinnovativeactionin

ordertohavesomethingwithlongerandmoresustainablevalue.Inotherwords,

intellectualpropertystrategyisinhighimportanceasanactiveorganofthe

company’sbrandstrategy.Abrandstrategy,addedwitheffectiveintellectual

propertystrategywillcreatebetterresultsinfinancialvaluebrandvalue.(Brand

Rewired,2010,21).

Inaddition,accordingtoKapferer,innovationsare”brandsoxygen”.Innovationre-

createbrandsleadershipbyfocusingonthevalue,insteadoffocusingonprice.

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Innovationsetsagoalfortheorganization,bypointingoutthatthebrandisabout

progressoncetheyenterthemarket.(Kapferer,2012,202).

Intellectualcapitalisdefinedas”Thevaluecreatedbyindividualsideasortheoverall

expertiseofacompany’sworkforce.Anintangibleassetthatcanbeprotectedby

patentortrademark.”(FinancialTimes,2016).AccordingtoBollen,Lauryet.al,

intellectualpropertycanbelinkedtocompanyperformanceandIntellectualCapital

forfollowingreasons;Firstly,intellectualpropertycanberegardedasamore

tangibleandmoreeasilyvaluedpartofintellectualcapitalsinceitconsistsofpatents,

copyrights&trademarks.Secondly,itexplainsthelinkbetweenintellectualproperty

andotherorganizationcapitalssuchashumancapital,structuralcapitaland

relationshipcapital.Bydoingso,intellectualpropertystrategiesbecomemorevisibly

includedinthecompanystrategyanddecision-making.Itiscommonthatcompanies

treattheirintellectualcapitalandintellectualpropertyasasamesubject.When

failingtoseparatethe”strategicallycrucialintangiblesfromotherassetsandfailing

tounderstandthelinksbetweenthesestrategicintangiblesanditsfutureintellectual

property.Thirdlyintellectualpropertyisarelevantpartofthecompanyintellectual

capital.intellectualpropertymanagementgivescompanyaopportunitytoleverage

intellectand”leadtothecompanytoincreasedoverallperformance.”(Bollen,Laury;

Vergauwen,Philip;Schnieders,Stephanie2005).

Brandsareoftenassociatedtothetermtrademark.However,brandisalotwider

topic;“Brandisoftenunderstoodsimplyasasynonymtotrademark,butnowadaysa

brandisseenasthesumofallofcustomerexperiencesofthecompanyorproductin

question.”(TrademarkNow,2016).Togetherwithotherintellectualpropertyrights,

trademarkstillrepresentsthelegalaspectofabrand.Theinterviewsconductedwith

theparticipantsforthisstudyhighlightedtheroleoftrademarks.Thisisalsowhythis

researchismorefocusedtotrademarksandtheirimportantroleincompany’sbrand

performance.

Trademark

17

”Atrademarkisasigncapableofdistinsguishingthegoodsorservicesofone

enterpriseformthoseofotherenterprises.TrademarksareprotectedbyIntellectual

Propertyrights.”(WIPO2016).

Inanarticle”FiveTrademarkLawStrategiesformanagingBrands”(2012),TimothyA.

Lemperdefinesbrandnameas”avaluablepieceofIPthatlawyerscallatrademark.”

Moresimplyput,brandnamesaremarksandtermtrademarkisusedwhenbrandis

aboutproducts,servicemarkthenisusedforservicesandtradenamesusedinthe

nameofacompany.However,theseallearliermentionedareoftenplacedunderthe

termtrademark.(Lemper,2012).

Aregisteredtrademarkgivesitholderanexclusive”righttousethetrademarkand

righttopreventotherfromusingconfusinglysimilarmarks.”Trademarkissign,more

detailedforexampleaword,figure,personalname,shape,colororamelody.

Trademarkprotectionisappliedwithawrittenapplicationwithanationalauthority

anditsgrantedforperiodoften10years,whichcanberenewed.(Papula-Nevinpat,

2016).

AccordingtoLemper,thebrandmanagersarefacingincreasingpressuretobeaware

aboutthelegalissuesrelatedtobrandnamesastrademarks.Thisisvitalsincebrand

namesarebecomingmorevaluableasmarketingtoolsinhighlycompetitivemarkets.

(Lemper,2012).

TrademarkStrategies

TimothyLemperinhisFiveTrademarkLawStrategiesformanagingBrands(2012),

definesthefivestepsofimplementinganeffectiveTrademarkstrategyinhisarticle

”FiveTrademarkLawStrategiesformanagingBrands”asfollowing;Thebrandname

shouldbecreatedtobeas”fanciful”or”arbitrary”inordertodifferentiateand

createlong-termbenefitsasmoredistinctivebrands.Secondlythebrandshould

conducttrademarkmonitoringinordertobeawareofotherpotentialsimilar

trademarksinsamemarketsandalsoavoidtoinfringeuponordiluteother

trademarks.Thirdly,itisrelevanttoconducttrademarkauditsinordertomakesure

thatthetrademarkwillfittogetherwiththebrandandtheprocuctorservice.As

fourthstep,accordingtoLemperthemanagementshould”documentconsumer

complaints”.Inadditiontogeneralfeedbackcollectionaboutthebrandproductor

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service,thecomplaintscan”serveasapowerfultoolforcollectingsuchevidence,

recordingindividualcomplaintsthatwhenaggregatedcanbeusedtodetect

potentialtrademarkproblemsandidentifythesourceofthoseproblems”(Lemper,

2012).Asfinalstep,thebrandshouldadoptatrademarkmanagementsystem.The

mainuseforthesetrademarkmanagementsystemsistomaintainthatallrelevant

stagestoprotectthecompany’strademarks.Theactualuseisgenerallycollecting

evidenceoftheusageoftrademarks,maintainingregistrationsoftrademarksand

opposingattemptsofothertoinfringeordiluteyourtrademark.(Lemper,2012).

Inaddition,accordingtoGlobalIntellectualPropertyCentertheintellectualproperty

rightholdersshouldmonitortheirretailspaceandidentifypotentialinfringements.

Brandsshoulddeveloptheirmarketintelligencebyusingforexamplemystery

shoppingtechniquesinordertocollectrandomsamplesoftheirproductsfor

inspection,authenticationandmonitortheirmarketplaceenvironment.Brands

shouldalsobeabletomonitorproductsunderthebrandnameininternetsites,such

asauctions.Today,therevariouswaysofapplyingsimpleandlow-costsolutionsfor

brandsthatcanhelptoidentifytheauthenticproductfromcounterfeits.Byapplying

newtechnologythatoffersnewfeaturessuchasbarcodes,RFIDtags,holograms,

watermarksandanti-counterfeitinginktechnology.(GlobalIntellectualProperty

Center,2016).

Otherintellectualpropertyrightsarecopyright,patents,industrialrights,design

rights.AccordingtoWIPOcopyrightorauthorsright”islegaltermusedtodesrcibe

therightsthatcreatorshaveovertheirliteraryandartisticandartisticworks.”

Includingbooks,music,paintings,sculpture,andfilms.Alsocomputerprograms,

databases,advertisements,maps,andtechnicaldrawingsareprotectedbycopyright.

However,copyrightdonotprotectideas,procedures,methodsofoperationor

mathematicalconcepts.Titles,slogans,andlogosareprotectedbycopyrightifthey

havelegitauthorship.Copyrightisconsistingfromtwomaintypes,economicrights

andmoralrights.Economicrightsincludingtherightswhichallowstheownerofthe

copyrighttoreceivefinancialrewardsfromotheruserofhisorherworks.Moral

rightsaredesignedtoprotectnon-economicinterestsoftheownerauthorofthe

copyright.

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PatentdefinedbyWIPO”isanexclusiverightsgrantedforaninvention,whichisa

productoraprocessthatprovides,ingeneral,anewwayofdoingsomethingof

offersanewtechnicalsolutiontoaproblem.”Togetapatent,technicalinformation

abouttheinventionmustbedisclosedtothepublicinapatentapplication.Patents

areappliedbyitsterritoryincountryorregion.Thepatentisunderthelegislationof

thecountrywhereithasbeengrantedandfiled.Patentisgrantedforalimited

period,usuallyfor20yearsfromthefilingdate.(WIPO,2016).

Industrialdesignsarefollowing;inlegalsense,anindustrialdesignconstitutesthe

ornamentaloraestheticaspectofanarticle.Itcanalsoincludethreedimensional

featuressuchasshape.Intwodimensionalfeatureitcanbetheline,patternorcolor

ofanarticle.Theownerofregisteredindustrialdesignordesignpatentisrightfulto

inhibitanyotherthirdpartiesfrommaking,sellingorimportingtheprotecteddesign,

especiallywhenitisdoneforcommercialpurposes.(WIPO,2016).

OrganisationssupportingIntellectualPropertyRights

Intellectualpropertyismanagedbymanyorganizationsthataresupportingits

functions.WorldTradeOrganization,WTOmanagestheglobalrulesoftrade

betweennations.Theaimoftheorganizationistomakesurethatglobaltradeworks

assmoothly,predictablyandfreelyaspossible.WTOasoneoftheyoungest

organizationswasestablishedinJanuary1st1995.Inpast50years,worldtradehas

grownrapidly,forexamplemerchandiseproductexportshasgrown6percent

annually.TogetherwithGeneralAgreementonTariffandTrade(GATT),itcreatea

stronginternationaltradingsystem.WTOhas162membercountries.Everyaction

andfunctioninWTOarenegotiatedwithmembercountriesgovernments.WTO

memberareoperatinginnon-discriminatorytradingsystemthatallowseachcountry

aguaranteethattheirexportsaretreatedfairlyandconsistentlyininternational

markets.(WTO,2016)WTO’sfieldsofworkaregoods,services,intellectualproperty,

Disputesettlement,andTradePolicyReview.Itsfunctionsareadministratingtrade

agreements,actingasaforumfortradenegotiations,settlingtradedisputes,

reviewingnationalpolicies,assistingdevelopingcountriesintradepolicyissues,and

cooperatingwithotherinternationalorganizations.(WTO,2016).

20

AgreementonTradeRelatedAspectsifIntellectualPropertyRights(TRIPS)iscreated

toenforceintellectualpropertyrightsanddeveloptheissuesrelatedtointernational

tradeincounterfeitgoods.Ithasbeenrecognizedthattherearelackinmultilateral

frameofprinciples,rulesanddisciplinesinthefieldofcounterfeitissues.TRIPS,in

short,isworkinginthebasisoftheGeneralAgreementonTariffsandTrade,GATT,

1947.(WTO,2016).Theagreementcanbedividedinthreemainparts,basedon

theirdifferentpurposeofaction.Firstpartisaboutthegeneralprovisionsandbasic

principlesoftheagreement.Thesecondpartisthemostvitaltounderstandsinceit

determineseachIntellectualPropertyRightsinsuccession.Incopyrighteachpartyof

TRIPSarerequiredtoagreewiththe”substantiveprovisionsoftheBerne

Conventionfortheprotectionofliteraryandartisticworks.”Theseprovisionsare

fromthelatestversioninParis1971.FromtheTrademarkaspecttheagreement

defineswhattypesof”singsmustbeeligibleforprotectionasatrademarkofservice

mark”.Italsocoverstheaspectofminimumrightsthatbelongtotheowner.

Industrialdesignsintheagreementaredeterminedtheprotectionforaperiodof10

years.Patentsinthisagreementarerequiredaccordingtothe”substantive

provisionsoftheParisConvention1967.”Agreementalsoincludestherequirement

ofthepatentprotectionfor20years.Thepatentprotectionisavailablefor”all

inventions,whetherofproductsandprocesses,inalmostallfieldsoftechnology”.In

addition,TRIPSincludestheprotectionagainstbreachofconfidenceontradesecrets

andknow-howwhichhavecommercialvalue.Thirdpartoftheagreement”setsout

theobligationsofmembergovernmenttoprovideproceduresandremediesunder

theirdomesticlawtoensurethatintellectualpropertyrightscanbeeffectively

enforced,byforeignrightholdersaswellasbytheirownnationals.(WTO,2016).

MadridSystemisprovidinga”onestopsolutionforregisteringandmanagingmarks

wordwide”(WIPO,2016).Ithas97membercountries.MadridSystemrequiresonly

onewrittenapplicationtofile,andwhenbusinessorevolvesthesamesystemcanbe

usedtoenlargetheprotectionofthemarktonewmarkets.(WIPO,2016)

3 Methodology

Thedataforthestudywascollectedbysemi-structuredinterviews.Accordingto

Saunders,Lewis,Thornhillthequalitativeresearchtheaimwastostudythe

21

phenomenaandmakesenseofitbyinterviewingtheprofessionalsfromthefieldof

thetopic.Generally,theauthorhastobeabletoworkonnaturalenvironmentby

establishingtrust,participation,accesstomeaningsandin-depthunderstanding

(Sanderset.al.162).

”Researchmethodsmaybeunderstoodasallthosemethods/techniquesthatare

usedtoforconductionofresearch.Researchmethodsortechniques,thusreferto

methodstheresearchersuseinperformingresearchoperations”.Simplyexplainedall

theactionsthataredoneduringtheperiodoftimeusedtostudytheresearchare

consideredasresearchmethods.(Kothari,2004,7)

Itisalsoimportanttonotifythatresearchmethodandmethodologyisnotasame

term.Methodologyisthescientificapproachtotheresearchprocessanditstudies

theresearchproblemandit’ssolvingfrommoresystematicpointofview.(Kothari,

2004,8)

3.1Researchproblemandresearchquestion

AccordingtoMalhotra(2012,183)”Qualitativeresearchisoftenusedtogenerate

hypothesesandidentity.Inthisthesistheaimistoidentifyaphenomenaandgain

deeperknowledgeaboutthetopic.Qualitativeisconsideredasactionresearchanit

isusedespeciallyinproduct,communications,andbranddesign”(op.cit.p.183).

AccordingtoMalhotra,qualitativeresearchhasmoreflexibilityandoffersthe

participantsexpresstheirviewsandenablestheauthortoobservetheirbehaviour.”

(op.cit.p.183-188).

TheaimofthisstudywastoexplorethevalueofIntellectualPropertyRightsin

Branding.Authorsobjectivewastoexplorecurrentchallengesandtrendsaroundthe

topicstudied.Withthepurposeofachievingthisgoal,tworesearchquestionwere

established:

1. Whatisthevalueofintellectualpropertyrightsinbrandmanagement?

22

2. Howintellectualpropertyrightscanbeusedasatoolinbrandmanagement?

Becausethistypeofresearchquestionstudyingphenomenacannotbeanswered

precisely,aqualitativeresearchmethodwaschosen.PaulTenHavestatesthat

alwayswhenstudyingaphenomenawitheffectonsociallifeofhuman,theformof

studyissocialresearch.(TenHave,2004,1).Hedescribessocialresearchas

following;allkindsofknowledgeproductionthatinvolveinspectionofempirical

evidence.(op.cit.p.1).AccordingtoMalhotra,qualitativeresearchcanbealso

describedas”actionresearch”duetoitseffectiveusageinproduct,communication

andbranddesign.(Malhotra,2012,183).Malhotraalsostatesthatqualitative

researchmethodismoreflexibleandthereforethroughvariousmethodsitallowsits

participantstogetinvolved,expresstheirviewsandevenobservebehaviours.

(op.cit.p.188).

Inaddition,PaulTenHavestatestherethreetypesofsocialresearchthatare

differingfromeachotherbytheirnature,generalgoalsandresearchstrategy.These

threearequalitative,comparativeandquantitative.AccordingtoTenHave,

Qualitativeresearchmethodisusedtostudycommonalities.Qualitativeresearchis

focusingsmallernumberofcasesbutmanyaspectsarestudiedmorecloselythrough

theoreticalconcepts.(TenHave,2004,3-4).Manyqualitativeresearcharebasedon

conceptualandinterpretativeapproach.Moreclarified,differentevents,actionsor

expressionscannotbeassumedasdirectsolutionwithoutdoingsometypeof

contextualinterpretation.(op.cit.p.4).Itiscommonthatqualitativeresearchtend

tohavemoreholisticapproachwithmorerelaxedstyleoflanguage.Qualitative

researchcanoftenbepreferredtobemoreopenandexploratorybyitsstrategy.(op.

cit.p.4).

Bychoosingthesemi-structuredinterviewasresearchmethod,theauthorhadto

decidetostayopen-mindedforupcomingfindingsanddiscussionasaresultofthe

interviewsconducted.

23

3.2Interviewasadata-collectionmethod

Semi-structuredinterviewwaschosenasdatacollectionmethodsincethepurpose

oftheresearchaimstoexploreandexplainthemesrelatedtothetopic.Accordingto

SaundersA,LewisM,ThornhillP.(2012),differentinterviewenvironmentaffectthe

natureoftheresearchinterviewofthewayofinteraction.Theinterviewscanbe

conductedface-to-faceorbytelephoneorinotherelectroniccommunication

platformviainternet.(op.cit.p.375).Thekeyistorecognizethatthedatacollection

methodmeetstheresearchquestionandresearchobjectives.(op.cit.p.376).By

choosingsemi-structuredinterviewinrequiredthattheinterviewstructureincluding

questionsaskedhadtobedesignedbeforehand.

Byinterviewingtheauthorhasapossibilitytouseprobequestionswherethe

intervieweeisaskedtoexplainandbuildontheirresponses.AccordingtoSaunders

etal.(2012,376),semi-structuredinterviewalsomayleadthediscussionto

unknownbutafterwardssignificanttopicsthatsupporttheresearch.When

interviewing,theinterviewerhastobeawareoftheinteractionwithintervieweeand

howthequestionsaskedwilleffectontheresearchdata.Especiallypeopleinhigher

leaderpositionsaregenerallymorewillingtobeinterviewedratherthancompleting

aquestionnaire.Theinterviewiseasywayforbothsidestoexpresstheirthoughts

aboutthetopic,andgivesanopportunitytoreceivefeedbackfromtheinterviewee

andpersonalassurance.(op.cit.p.378).

Inaddition,Grahamstatesthatinsemi-structuredinterviewsimilarquestionsare

askedofallpersonsinterviewed.Theformofquestionsgothroughaprocessof

developmenttoensuretheirtopicfocus;toensureequivalentcoverageof

intervieweesarepromptedbysupplementaryquestionsiftheyhavenotdealt

spontaneouslywithoneifthesubareasofinterest.Approximatelyequivalent

interviewtimeisallowedineachinterview.(Graham,2005,70).Semi-structured

interviewhasitsstrengthinits”flexibilitybalancedbystructure,andthequalityof

thedatasoobtained.”However,semi-structuredinterviewincludeshigherlevelof

workloadduetothepreparationphase.Alsotheinterviewanalysis,implementation

andpresentationisneeded.(op.cit.p.70).Intheinterviewpreparationphaseitis

24

importanttokeepinmindthattheresearchisaboutdiscovery,nottodemonstrate

whatisexpectedfromthecasestudied.(op.cit.p.72).

Inthisthesistheresearchmethodisqualitativeresearchandthemeinterview.In

designresearch,the”themeinterviewcanbeusedatthosestageswhere

understandingofaphenomenomofsituationsisrequired.”(Kananen,2013,110)

Thosesituationsare;definingproblem,evaluationofeffectivenessandevaluationof

results.(Kananen,2013,110).Themeinterviewisconductedasindividualinterview.

Themeinterviewisalsopossibletoconductasgroupinterview,butinthisthesisan

individualinterviewisgivingmoreaccurateandcredibleinformationaboutthetopic

(Kananen,2013,111).Italsogivesbetterframesfortheworkloadoftheinterview

process,sinceingroupinterviewtheoftheinterviewergrowsin”linearmanner”

(Kananen,2004,111).

Theestimatedamountofinterviewedpersonsisfour.Personsinterviewedare

selectedsothatthephenomenom,orthetopicoftheresearchisassociatedwith

them.(Kananen,2013,111)Interviewsareaimedtoarrangeasface-to-face

meetings,butthereisalsoapossibilityofdistanceinterview.Inthistypeofsituation

wherethekeypersontointerviewisnotavailableformeetingperson,theinterview

willbearrangedotherwise.AccordingtoGraham,(2005)itis”bettertohavekey

dataoflimitedamountandqualitythannoneatall.”

Theinterviewthemeischosenwithanaimthatitcoversthewholephenomenomin

bestpossibleway.Thiswillaffectintheselectionofquestionsconductedduringthe

interview.Theideaofthethemeinterviewcouldbeexampledwithadiscussionwith

anunseenperson.(Kananen,2013,112)Inthemeinterviewtheinterviewermustbe

abletoconducttheinterviewbyopeningthedifferentlayersofthetopicduringthe

discussion.Itisalsovitaltobeflexibleandbepreparedthattheinterviewwillgo

throughunexpectedpath.(Kananen,2013,113).

3.3Interviewdesign

ThreeparticipantswerechosentobeinterviewedfromthefieldofIntellectual

PropertyRights,specializedinTrademarksandbrandowner,inordertohave

25

professionalviewpointofcurrentsituationsaroundthetopic.Thesepersons

interviewedcouldbeabletodeterminecurrenttrendsandgivetheirownopinions

andpossiblesuggestionsofimprovementanddevelopment.Personswerechosen

fromcompaniesthatareworkinggloballyandthepersoninterviewed

professionalizedinthefieldofIPforthevalidityoftheinterviewresults.Thepersons

interviewedwereMr.MikaelKolehmainen,CEOofTrademarkNow,Mr.Jussi

Mikkola,EuropeanTrademarkAttorneyPapula-Nevinpat,PetteriAhonen,ZeroPoint

FinlandOy.

Theinterviewframeworkisbasedonfollowingguidelines;theinterviewincluded

sevenquestion,fromwhichsixincludescontent.Theinterviewstartedwithgeneral

backgroundquestionasmorefocusedonthepersoninterviewed.Inthebeginningof

theinterviewtherewaseasierquestionsandendedwithmoredifficult,complicated,

abstractorsensitivequestions.Theendingquestionwasdesignedtobe”anythingto

add”,inordertoconfirmiftheparticipanthadsomethingtoaddtotheinterview.

(Koskinen,2005)

3.4Dataanalysis

Thedatareceivedfromsemi-structuredinterviewswasqualitative.Therefore,the

analysismethodhadtobechosentosupportthedatacollected.Sincequalitative

databyitsnatureiscomplexanduniquefromitscontentgatheredfrominterviews,

differentanalysismethodhadtobetakenintoconsideration.Oncethedata

collectionshadstartedfrominterviews,itwasalsoimportanttopreparethedatafor

analysis.(Saunderset.al.p.549).Theresearchwasconductedasdeductiveapproach

sinceauthorwasnotexperiencedenoughtocreateowntheoryfromthedata

gathered.Alreadyexistingtheoreticalframeworkwasused.(op.cit.p.549)Interview

themesandquestionsweredeliveredtotheparticipantsbeforehandinordertogain

credibilityandmakesuretheparticipantshadproperinformationaboutthe

interview.(op.cit.p.385).

Researchinterviewswereaudio-recordedandsubsequentlytranscribedinwritten

formforfurtheractions.(op.cit.p.550).Theinterviewsweretranscribedquickly

aftertheywereconducted.Inthisphaseauthorhadtobecertainthatthedata

26

transcribedwasaccurateandavoiderrors.Whendataistranscribeditcanbestarted

touse.Intheverybeginningofprocessingtheresearchdata,authornumberedthe

questionsaskedinorderfindthemeasilyfromthedata.Alsouseofcolorsto

highlightimportantthemesandcategoriesseemeduseful.(op.cit.p.551-552).

Transcriptsweresummarizedinmore”readable”from,includingthekeypoints.Self-

memoswereusedduringtheinterviewsandthroughthewholeresearchprocess.It

helpedtheauthortokeepontrackofimportantissuesoftheresearchprocess.(op.

cit.p.554-555).

Aftertranscriptionthedatacollectedfrominterviewswascategorized.By

categorizingthedatainsmallerchunksoftextwithproperdescriptivetopicsthedata

hadbetteraccessforanalysisandeasiertorearrangeintoanalyticalcategories.Data

canbecategorizedinconceptdrivenordatadrivencategories.Authordecidedto

useconceptdrivencategorizewiththedatabasedexistingtheoryandliterature.

(Saundersetal.p.557-558).Bycategorizingthedata,authorwasabletoengagewith

datawhichhelpedintheanalysisprocess.Byunderstandingthedata,itwaseasierto

rearrangethedata,gainnewinsightsandevensuggestnewones.(op.cit.p.560)

Contentanalysiswaschosenastheanalysismethodforthisthesis.Accordingto

Tuomi&Sarajärvi(2004)contentanalysisisascientificmethodthataimsto

conclusionsespeciallyfromverbal,symbolicandcommunicativeresearchdata.It

aimstoanalyzedocumentsbothsystematicallyandobjectively.Documentsanalyzed

canforexampleinterviewssoitisrelevantmethodinthisresearch.However,the

documentshasbetranscribedinwrittenform.(Tuomi&Sarajärvi,2004).

Kyngäs&Vanhanendefinestheaimofcontentanalysistoseekdifferentmeaningsof

theresearchdata.Contentanalysiscanbedividedintwomethods;analysingcontent

andcontentbreakdown.Analyzingmeansthattheresultsaredescribedverbally.

Contentbreakdownthenaimstodescribethecontentinquantitativeform(Kyngäs&

Vanhanen,1999)InthisresearchtheAnalyzingmethodismorefavorablesince

researchwasconductedintwointerviews.

Thegoalofanalysisistoestablishaverbalanddistinctdescriptionofthe

phenomena.Simplyput,itisaboutorganizingthedataincompactanddistinctform.

27

Theunitofanalysiscanforexampleaword,combinationofwordsorbigpicture

dependingontheresearch.(Tuomi&Sarajärvi,2004).

Contentanalysiscontainsfollowingactions;materialreduction,clusteringand

abstraction.Inmaterialclusteringtheoriginalmaterialisanalyzedindetailinorder

totofindsimilaritiesanddifferencesfromthedata.Similarconceptsareclassified

andcombinedasonenamedclass.Abstractingisaboutseparatingtherelevantdata

fromtheresearchmaterial.Bycreatingcommonconceptstheresearcherestablishes

adescriptionoftheresearchandcomparesthetheoryandconclusionstothe

originalmaterialwhencreatingnewtheory.(Tuomi&Sarajärvi,2004)

4 Findings

Similaranswerswerecategorizedundersubheadingswhichrepresentedasimilar

contentreceivedfromtheinterviews.Bycategorizingtheauthoraimedtoclarifythe

researchresultsandhighlightthetopicsdiscussedintheinterviews.Inqualitative

research,theresearcherhastoexplore,analyze,synthetizeandtransformthedata

sothatitinaccordancewiththeresearchobjectivesandanswerstotheresearch

question.(Saunderset.al.546.)

TheparticipantsintheresearchinterviewwereMikaelKolehmainen,JussiMikkola

andPetteriAhonen.KolehamainenistheCEOofTrademarkNowwithexperienceasa

trademarkandIPattorneyforeightyears.Nowheisactiveinthefieldoftrademarks

andbranding.Kolehmainenprovidestrademarkservicesforinternationalbrands.

”TrademarkNowprovidesanintelligentweb-basedtrademarkmanagementplatform

thatisusedbyenterprisecompanies,lawfirmsandbrandingagenciesforinstant

trademarksearchandwatchresults.”(TrademarkNow,2016)

JussiMikkolaisaEuropeantrademarkattorneyatPapula-Nevinpatandalsoa

partnerinthecompany.Mikkola’scareerinthefieldofIPstartedintheyear2002

byenforcingcompanies’trademarkpatentsanddomainnames.Duringyear2003-

28

2004MikkolaworkedintheOfficeforHarmonizationintheInternalMarket(OHIM).

Intheyears2004-2007,MikkolaworkedastrademarkattorneyinaFinnishpatent

agency.In2007,MikkolarejoinedPapula-Nevinpatandiscurrentlyresponsiblefor

preliminaryexaminations,includingtrademarkstrategies,domesticandforeign

trademarkregistrations,internationaltrademarks,USAregistrations,agreements,

disputes,oppositions,appeals,infringementcases,protectionanddefense.(Papula-

Nevinpat,2016)

PetterAhonen,thefounderandformerCEOofZeroPointFinlandOy.ZeroPointhas

beenworkingwithhigh-qualitysportscompressionproductssince2009andcreated

astrongpositioninFinland.ThenextstepforZeroPointisattractinginternational

markets.

4.1Trademarks

AccordingtoKolehmainen,enteringnewmarketsisalwaysachallenge.The

possibilitythatacertaintrademarkisalreadyregisteredinthenewregionhas

increased.AsanexampleheusesChinawhichisthemostattractivemarketwith

potentialcustomers,andbrandsloveit.However,inChinathetrademarksareoften

alreadyregistered,andtheonlywayoutisbymeansofnegotiationsandpayments.

Mikkolasuggeststhatwhenenteringnewmarketswithatrademark,itis

recommendabletofindthesimilartrademarksbeforeactingonthemarketinorder

tosecurethattherearenoconflictingcases.Mikkolasummarizesthechallengeina

sentence”WheninRome,doastheRomansdo”.Thismeansthatoneneedsto

rememberthatineverymarketthereisapossibilitythatsomeoneelsewillhavea

similartrademark,andthebrandandtrademarkownerneedsbereadytotake

properactions.

Kolehmainenalsostatesthattheincreasednumberoftrademarkapplicationshas

createdaverychallengingenvironmentforfindingarisk-freetrademarknamethat

doesnotinfringeother,alreadyexistingtrademarks.Trademarksneedtopass

likelihoodofconfusionanalysis,whatmonitorssimilarmarksinvisual,conceptual

29

andproductlevel.Thisleadstoasituationinwhichisitmorechallengingtohavea

trademarkapplicationfiled.Itisalsodifficulttomakeone’svoiceheardfromthe

massiveclusteroftrademarks.Mikkolaaddsthata”catchy”nameisagoodstarting

pointforestablishingastrongprotectedbrand.

4.2Brandsintellectualpropertymanagement

Today’strendsshowthatbrandandtrademarkownersaremoreresponsiblefor

takingcareoftheirtrademark.Trademarkoffices,then,offermonitoringservices

thatactivelylookforpotentialinfringementsandupcomingcaseswherethe

trademarkownershouldavoidinfringingothersortakeactionifsomeoneis

infringingtheirrights.BothMikkolaandKolehmainenagreethatitisimportantthat

thereissomeonemonitoringabrand’sintellectualpropertyrights.Ofcourse,the

majorelementsoftheintellectualpropertydependonthefieldofbusinessandthe

businessstrategy.

KolehmainenandMikkolaagreethatintellectualpropertyisacompanyinvestment

justlikemarketing.AccordingtoMikkola,abrand’sintellectualpropertyshouldbe

anongoingprocessasthebrandgrowsanddevelops.Thefinancialexpensescanbe

allocatedtoseveralyears.Kolehmainenseesthatintellectualpropertyshouldbe

includedinthebrandmanagementstrategyjustlikemarketinginorderthecreate

goodwillforthebrand.Likemarketingactions,abrand’sintellectualpropertyshould

beincludedinthebrandstrategy.AccordingtoKolehmainen,aprotectedtrademark

willcreatemoregoodwillandvalueforthebrand,comparedto,forexample,abrand

logoorslogan.

Mikkolastatesthatthemajorissueswithabrand’sintellectualpropertyarethe

trademarkandpatentapplicationfilingdatesandregistrations.Brandownerswant

everythingtobedoneasquicklyaspossible,buttherealityisthatittakesalong

periodoftime,evenayear.AnotherissuethatMikkolaseesisthatbrandstendto

”lock”theirtrademarksattooearlyastage,beforethereisactualresearchdoneon

otherpossiblesimilartrademarkswiththeriskofthelikelihoodofconfusion.

30

4.3Thevalueofresearchanddevelopment(R&D)inbrandmanagement

Inab2cenvironment,bothMikkolaandKolehmainenagreethatatrademarkisoften

seenastheactualend-product.AnexampleKolehmainenusesApple’siPhone.

IPhonecanbeseenasanextentionofthebrandthattheconsumerwillbuyno

matterwhatAppledoes.Mikkolaseesthatsincetheactualproductcanbeabrand,

aneffectiveR&Dprocesscanincreasebrandequity.Healsoseesthatespeciallyin

theFinnishcompaniesR&Dandmarketingareseparatefromeachother.Acloser

cooperationbetweenthebranddesignersandR&Dcancreatebetterbrandequity

andstrengthenthebrandimage.AccordingtoMikkola,R&Dshouldbetiedtothe

brandmessage.

KolehmainenstatesthatR&Doffersapossibilityforabrandtocreateaproductor

servicethatmeetsthecustomerneedsmoreefficiently.R&Dcanalsobeseenasan

extentionofabrandsinceitaimstocreategoodwillfortheproductorservice,andin

b2c,asmentionedearlier,agoodproductcreatesgoodwillforthebrand.

Inb2c,Kolehmainenseesachallengeintoday’sindustry.Oftentheb2bbusinesses

servicesaremorecommonthanproducts.Brandsthenmightcreatesuchasuperior

productthatisnotinlinewiththecustomerneedsanddemandsorthebrandimage

answeringtothequestion”whatthebrandisabout”.

4.3Counterfeitsandpiracy

Counterfeitsareverycommonintoday’smassiveindustryofvariousproductsand

services.Mikkolastatesthatthefactisthatifacompanyhasanattractivebrandand

product,otherswilldefinitelycopyit.AccordingtoMikkola,agoodaunique

trademarknameisafoundationforstartingontherighttrackwithasuccessful

intellectualpropertyprotectionforabrand.Healsoaddsthatcooperationwith

customscounterfeitsurveillanceispossible,andthattodaytherearevarious

technologicalwayswhichbrand-ownerscanusetoprotecttheirproduct.Thiscanbe

31

donebyaddingafeature,suchasawatermarkorhologramthatconfirmsthe

authenticityoftheproduct.

Kolehmainenhighlightstheimportanceoftrademarkmonitoringasatoolforavoiding

thepossibleinfringementsofothersimilartrademarks.Effectivetrademark

monitoringalsohelpsabrandtofindsimilartrademarksandcounterfeitsinthe

marketwhichcanbeseeninfringingthebrand’sintellectualpropertyrights.

Kolehmainensuggestssuperiorserviceasapossiblesolutionforminimizing

counterfeits.Bycreatingsuchasuperiorproduct,themarketsandcustomerswillnot

acceptanytypeofcounterfeitsofthebrand.However,thisconceptcanbechallenging

intoday’shighlycompetitiveandcontentindustry.

4.5Chinaasanexamplemarket

AccordingtoKolehmainenChinaasamarketis”ahugeblackbox”,wherebranddo

notalwaysnowhattodoandhow.Chinaasamarketstillislargeandfullofpotential

customersandKolehmainendescribes;”brandsloveit.”ThechallengeinChinais

thatbeforeyouhaveevenenteredthemarketwithyourbrand,ithasbeenalready

registeredbysomeoneelse.Asabrandowner,youfindyourselfinapositionwhere

yourtrademarkhasbeenalreadytaken.Inthesecasestheonlywayoutnegotiating

andpayments.

MikkolastatesthatChinaisaveryimportantmarketsincemanycompanieshave

theirproductionlocatedinAsia.Whetherlikeitornot,thepercentageofgetting

infringedinChinaishigherthaninotherregions.Thishighlightstheimportanceof

protectingyourtrademark,otherwiseyoucannotoperatewithyourbrand.In

addition,anotherchallengeinChinaisthelocallanguageandfindinglegitdatabases

oflocalregisteredtrademarks.However,accordingtoMikkolaChinahasdeveloped

moreeffectivelawsystemandthecourtsystemisworkingbettertoday.

DuringtheinterviewMikkolainformedthathewillpublishablogpostaboutthe

ChineseIntellectualPropertyRightswithatopic”Thebesttimetoplantatreewas

twentyyearsago.Thesecondbestisnow”,withadifferentpointofviewthathas

beenwrittenearlier.Herecommendedtoincludetheblogpostasapartofthe

interviewmaterial.MikkolareferstoacaseMinnaParikka,wherefinnishdesigners

32

brandandtrademarkwas”hijacked”inChina.AccordingtoMikkolaitiscommon

knowledgethatChinesearecopyingwesternbrands,andthepossibilityof

infringementsismorefrequent.Mikkolaasksthathowsuchvaluablebrandshave

notconsideredtheirintellectualpropertyprotectionand”gotcaughtwiththeirpants

down?”Inmanycompaniesthereasonbehindtheunprotectedbrandsavingin

costs.Mikkolastatesthatthecommonattitudeseemstobethatthereisnouseto

protectabrandinacountrywherethelocalsdonotrespecttheIntellectual

propertyrights.However,Mikkolahighlightsthatinthissituation,themostcost-

effectiveandoftentheonlypossiblelegalwayofprotectionistoregisteryourbrand.

AsasummaryMikkolastates:”Soinsteadofwailingtakeaction!Don’tletyourbrand

behijacked.Ifyouhaven’tdonesoalready,it’snottoolatetogiveyourbrandproper

protectionitdeserves."(Mikkola,2016).

4.6Brand-ownerperspective

AccordingtoPetteriAhonenfromZeroPointtheimportanceoftrademarkprotection

isgettingmoreimportantalsointheirfieldofbusinessascompressionproduct

manufacturer.However,heseesthatitisnotthathighlightedasinotherfieldof

business,yet.Ahonenthinksthatthemostimportantaspectoftrademarkingisto

haverelevantrightsincorrectproductclassesandcategories.

Brandsneedtogrowbiggerbeforethevalueoftrademarkprotectionbecomesmore

importantasset.However,Ahonenagreesthatwhenthereisaninterestingproduct

onthemarket,thesimilarproductswillappearfromothercompetingbrands,andit

isverycommon.AsMikkolastated,whenthereisanattractivebrandonthemarket,

otherswillcopyit.Ahonenstatesthatmoreeffectivetrademarkanddesign

monitoringishighlyimportantbutforsmallerbrandswithlackofresourcesitisoften

achallenge.

ResearchandDevelopmentisvaluableassetforbrands.AccordingtoAhonenthe

productandthebrandneedtomeetthedemandsandexpectationsoftoday’strends

intheindustry.R&Dcreatescredibilityforthebrandandthecustomersandtarget

audiencesseeitasavaluablebenefit.Brandarealwayscomparedtoeachotherin

33

thesameproductcategory.Inotherwords,R&Ddonecorrectlycreatespositive

imageandcredibilityforthebrand.

ZeroPointhasfacedsomechallengeswiththeirIntellectualPropertystrategy.Ever

sincethebrandhasappliedforaglobaltrademarkregistration,theyhavefaced

chargesinseveralcountries.Oneofthemainreasonsisthatthebrand

name”ZeroPoint”consistsoftwogenericwords,whichhascausedchallegesto

registerthetrademark.Ahonenstatesthatitisdifficulttogettheapplication

throughinwidecategoriessuchas”clothing”.Itiseasiertofileatrademarkinmore

concisecategoryasinZeroPoint’scase”compressionsock”.ZeroPointhasfiledtheir

firstpatentandsofarhavenotreceivedanychargesorotherchallenges.Ageneral

challengewithsportsbrand’sAhonenseesthehighlevelofcompetitionandthe

clusterofvarious”textiles”inthefieldofbusiness.

ZeroPointusestrademarkspecialistintheirIntellectualPropertystrategy,whichis

responsibletomaintainthetrademarkrelatedissues.However,ZeroPointasabrand

isresponsibleformonitoringtheirdesignrightsandpossibleinfringements.

ZeroPointaimstocontinuewithmoreeffectiveandwidertrademarkprotectionin

future,butAhonenseesthatthebranddesignprotectionshouldbeinmainfocus.

5 Discussion

Thediscussionisbasedontheanswerswasbasedontheresultsstatedinchapter

four.Theanswersoftheintervieweeshadsimilaropinionsandunderstandingof

currentsituationaroundintellectualPropertyrightsanditsrelationtobrand

management.However,everyparticipanthadalsoimportantinsightsforthe

interviewresults.Inthischaptertheauthorasaresearcheraimstounderstandthe

researchresultsforownpointofview(Tuomi&Sarajärvi,2004)

Theresearchwasdividedintwointervieweegroupsbasedontheirbackgroundand

knowledgeofthetopic.Inthefirstgroupthebothinterviewedwereattorneys

34

specializedintrademarklaw.Anotheraspectwasaninterviewfromabrand-owner,

inordertohaveperspectivefromthatpracticalexperience.

5.1Summaryoffindings

Thesummaryoffindingswasbasedontheanswersfrompreviouschapter.

Intervieweeshadsimilaropinionsandexperiencesfromtheindustry,intellectual

propertymanagementandbrandmanagementbuteachinterviewofferedtheirown

valuableinsights.

Themainpointsthatthetrademarkspecialistpresentedwerethatthebrands

IntellectualPropertystrategyshouldbeanongoingprocessthatshouldnotbe

underratedintoday’shighlevelofcompetitionandclusterofvariousbrands.

IntellectualPropertystrategyshouldbeseenasaninvestmentthatcreatesvaluefor

thebrandjustlikemarketing.Alsothepotentialnewmarketswithpotential

customersaregreatopportunityforbrands.However,whenthebranddecidesto

enternewunknownmarkets,theintellectualpropertyrightsbecomeevenmore

important.BothtrademarkspecialistemphasizedthisaspectandusedChinaasan

exampledemographic.InChinaitiscommonknowledgethatthelevelof

infringementsandcounterfeitsishigher.Alsoso-calledtrademark”hijacks”aremore

common.Innewmarketsthatareunknownterritoriesthebrandneedtofindright

toolstocontroltheirintellectualpropertyandbeawarethattherearepeoplewilling

tobenefitofyourbrand.However,itdoesnotmeanthatitsomethingyouneedto

justaccept.Thatiswhytheearlystageactionsofprotectingyourbrandand

trademarkcomesimportant.Brandscannotassumethattheirstrongpositionin

currentmarketswillbesimilarinnewmarkets.Thebrandhasbeenpresumably

alreadynotifiedinthemarketsandtheremightbealreadysimilarbrandsthathave

sametypeofproductorservice,andevensimilarintellectualpropertyrights.

Whentalkingaboutbrandandintellectualproperty,themainkeyisintrademarks.

Otherintellectualpropertyelementsaremorefocusedinotherlevelsofcompany’s

productofserviceproductionorinnovation.Trademarkisthenameandlogothat

determinesyouonthemarketplaceandyourbrandisgenerallymostrecognized

35

fromthetrademarkname.Allparticipantsagreedtheimportanceofunique

trademarknameasafoundationtosucceed.Itoffersthebrandtodifferentiatefrom

othersandcreateslong-termbenefitsforthecompanyasthebrandgrows.

Assuggestionsandeffectivetoolsforstarting,andkeepingthebrandinrighttrackis

tostartwithacatchytrademarknameandmonitorpossiblesimilartrademarksthat

mightcreatelikelihoodofconfusion.Bybeingawareofotherpotentialsimilar

trademarksbrandscandorightdecisionsbeforefacingchallengesinthemarkets.

Howeverinaddition,itisveryplausiblethatattractivebrandsarealwayscopiedand

inthiscaseanuniquenameisnotenoughtoavoidtobeinfringed.Asapossible

suggestionforminimizingtheinfringementsistodriveyourbrandelementsand

productsorservicesinsuperioritylevel,sothatthemarketsjustwillnotacceptany

typeofcopyofthebrand.AsLemperstates,thetrademarkauditsarecrucial

knowledgeinordertomakesurethethatitfitstogetherwiththebrand,productor

service.Alsointrademarksstrategies,thetrademarksystemisrelevantinorderto

beabletocontrolbrandintellectualpropertyrights.

Brandprotectionstrategyshouldbeincludedasanimportantpartofthecompany’s

strategy.BrandIntellectualPropertystrategyshouldbeatleastinsamelevelof

importanceasmarketingstrategy.Intoday’shighandcontinuouslyincreasinglevel

ofcompetitionIntellectualpropertyrightscreategreatvalueforthebrandand

makessurethatyoucantakeactionagainstinfringements.

Itseemsthattherearestilllottodoinordertomanageyourbrandintellectual

propertyasavaluableassetforbusinesses.Asstated,today’shighnumberofbrand

insamecategoryofbusinessandcontinuouslyincreasingcompetitionemphasizes

thevalueofintellectualpropertyrightorderholdcurrentpositioninthemarkets,

andwellmanagedintellectualpropertystrategyanditsmanagementgivesbrandsat

leastanopportunitytoavoidinfringingotherbrandsandalsogivesopportunityto

takeactionagainstcounterfeitsorinfringementstowardsthem.Largerbrandsare

moreresourcefultotakeactionagainstindividualcases,whensmallerbrandsneed

tobuildtheirbrandprotectionaccordingtotheirresourcesinfinancialmatter.

36

5.2Limitations

Theauthorhadtoensurethattheinterviewbyitsnaturewasconsistentwiththe

researchtopicandresearchquestions.(Saundersetal.P.372)Authorensuredthat

theresearchhadreliability.Thereliabilitywascoveredbychoosingpropersourcesof

oftheoryfromwell-knownauthors.Authorwasalsoawareofpossibleissuesofbias

duringtheresearch.Firstly,theinterviewerbias,includingthecomments,toneof

voiceornon-verbalbehaviourthatcouldaffectthewayhowthequestionswere

askedduringtheinterview.(Saundersetal.p.381)Sincetheresearchincludedthree

interviewparticipants,theparticipationbiaswasalsotakeninconsideration.The

participationbiasmaylimittheparticipant’swillingnesstotakepartintheresearch,

whichthenmaylimitthedatacollectedduringtheinterviews.(Saundersetal.p.381-

382).However,allparticipantswerewillingtobeinterviewedandthetimeandway

ofinterviewingofconductingwasagreedbasedonthescheduleoftheparticipant,in

ordertomakethemfeelcomfortablewheninterviewed.Interviewswereconducted

viaSkypecall,telephonecallandemailinterview,basedonthewishesofthe

participants.Authorwasawareofpossiblechallengesthatmayoccurwhenusing

internetandphoneasainterviewchannel.Authorhadtomakesurethatthe

internetconnectionwasstableandthevenueofinterviewwassilentandhadno

limitsintimeofusage.Beforeeachinterview,authormadesurealltheequipment

neededfortheinterviewworkedsmoothly.Intervieweeswereinformedbeforehand

abouttheinterviewtopicsandestimatedschedulebyemail,soeachinterviewee

wereabletopreparethemselves.Sinceeachinterviewwasconductedinenglish,

authormadesurethatauthorsownpronounciationwasclear,andthequestions

askedwereclear.Eachintervieweewasabletobeinterviewedinenglish,andwere

abletoexpresstheiranswerswithpropercontent.Somesmallcorrectionshadtobe

done,byverifyingfromtheintervieweethatdidtheauthorunderstandcorrectly

whattheanswerincluded.

Authorslevelofknowledgeoftheresearchtopiceffectedtheinterviewprocessand

itsresults.Duringthetheoretical(Saundersetal.p.834)Authorwantedtoexplore

thephenomenaandgainpersonalknowledgeandunderstandthemainpointsof

currentsituationofthevalueofintellectualpropertyrightsinbrandmanagement.It

hadbothpositiveandnegativeimpact.Apositivefactorwasthattheauthorwas

37

interestedandmotivatedtoseekdataofthetopicandstrengthenpersonal

knowledgeoftheresearchtopic.Anegativefactorwasthetopicwasrelativelywide

andcomplex;includingtwolargeentitiesIntellectualPropertyRightsandBranding.

However,theauthorwantedtoconductaresearchofacurrentandimportant

phenomenaandthereforecreateachallengingtopicforgainingspecialknowledge.

Limitationsthattheauthornoticedafterinterviewswerecompleted,werethatin

someprobequestionsusedtogaindeeperdatacouldhavebeenevenmoredetailed.

Theauthorslackofexperienceinsemi-structuredinterviewscausedthislimitation,

butalsogavestrongunderstandingoftheprocess.Authorexpectedthatthe

interviewswouldbedoneinrelaxedmood,inordertohaveinterestingdiscussions

andsogainmoreinformation.Intervieweeswere,positively,willingtoanswersthe

interviewquestionsandtheysawtheresearchtopicveryusefulandtimely.

6 ConclusionsandFutureSuggestions

Inthisresearchtheaimwastoexplorethecurrentsituationoftheimpactof

intellectualpropertyrightsinbranding,andinordertohavesomewhatgeneral

imageofthesituationtheinterviewwassuitablemethod.Theliteratureabout

IntellectualPropertywaseasilyfoundfromtheofficialwebsitesofintellectual

propertyrightssuchasWIPO.Brandliteraturewasmoretheoreticalandthereview

hadmoreworkloadinordertohavepropertheorytosupporttheresearch.

However,largeamountofliteratureandadvisementfromseveralpeopleleadto

greatoutcomeduringcollectingthetheoreticalbackgroundforthisresearch.

Theresearchaimwastoexploretheresearchtopicbasedonfollowingresearch

questions:

1. Whatisvalueofintellectualpropertyrightsforbrandmanagement?2. Howintellectualpropertyrightscanbeusedasatoolinbrandmanagement?

Thefirstquestionwasbasedonthecontentoftheinterviewquestionsaskedfrom

theparticipants.Duringtheinterviewstheauthorhadmainthemesinthequestions,

addedwithprobequestionsinordertogaindeeperdata.Theexpectationwasthat

38

noneoftheparticipantswillhavesimilaropinionsineveryquestion.However,after

theinterviewswerecompletedanddatawasanalyzed,bothtrademarkattorneys

hadquitesimilarthoughtsaboutcurrenttrendsintoday’sindustry.Asthemost

importantexample,thevalueofintellectualpropertyrightsinbrandmanagementis

agreatassetinhighlevelofcompetition,thatshouldbeseenasaninvestmentfor

thebusiness.Bothagreedthatjustlikemarketingstrategyandfinancialinvestments

inmarketing,theintellectualpropertyofthebrandshouldbeincludedtothe

companystrategy.Asthecompetitionincreases,brandshavetobeinnovative,

upgradetheirproductorservice,andalsoprotectthem.Inordertomaintainthe

competitiveadvantageandvalueforthebrand,brandownersneedtoawarethe

brandandtrademarkhastobeundercontinuousdevelopmentandupgrade.Asboth

trademarkexpertsagreeininterviews,acatchyanduniquetrademarkorbrand

namegivesstrongfoundationforsuccessfulintellectualpropertymanagement.

Thetrendisthatbrandownersaremoreresponsibletomaintainandmanagetheir

intellectualpropertyissues.Asaconclusion,brandsthenneedtohaveworkforce

whichunderstandtheimportanceofintellectualpropertyasanasset,andalsohave

theskillshowtomanageandmonitorthebrandsintellectualpropertyrights.From

thebrand-ownerperspective,itisimportanttobeawareofintellectualproperty

rightsasanvaluableasset.Dependingontheresources,brandsshouldmanagetheir

intellectualpropertystrategyinbestpossiblelevelsothatatleastthetrademarkand

designisprotected.Brand-ownersneedtounderstandthatoncethereisan

attractingproductonthemarket,otherswillcopyit.Alsotheriskofgettinginfringed

increases.However,effectivemanagementandmonitoringofintellectualproperty

rightswillatleastlimitthepossibleharmthatcounterfeitsorinfringementsmay

causeforthebrand.Intellectualpropertyrightsisanassetthatoffersstrongerand

stablefutureforthebrandasitgrows.Bysuccessfuleffortsinbrandmanagement

togetherwithintellectualpropertyrights,thelevelofleverageinbrandscompetitive

advantagecanbeincreased.Protectedtrademark,forexamplewillcreatemore

goodwillandvalueforbrandthatthelogoorslogan.

Assuggestionforfuture,brandaudits,consumerfeedbackdocumentationand

effectivemysteryshoppingcouldbevaluabledatathathelpstomanageandmonitor

thebrandwithbetteroutcome.Futuresuggestionsforavoiding,oratleast

39

minimizingcounterfeitsandpiracy,brandsshouldadoptnewtechnologyto

strengthenauthentificationoftheirproducts.Brandscanalsodesignaproductwith

suchsuperiorfeatures,thatthemarketsandcustomer’swillnotacceptanytypeof

alternatives.

Accordingtotheauthorsownpointofview,theresearchansweredwellinthe

researchquestion.Intervieweesimpactfortheresearchwasinhighimportancein

ordertogaindataresults.Theresearchcouldhavemoreparticipantsinorderto

haveevenmoredetaileddatafromthefieldontrademarkandintellectualproperty

ingeneral.Allthedatareceivedthroughinterviewswasveryvaluableandhadgreat

insightsabouttoday’sindustry.Inaddition,thisresearchwastheveryfirst

conductedbytheauthor,whichgavegreatexperienceforfuture.

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IPRdefinitions:http://www.papula-nevinpat.com/userData/papula/pdf-

files/Papula_IPR_opas_200x200_2015_en_LR.pdf

Tuomi&Sarajärvi,Laadullinentutkimusjasisällönanalyysi(2004)

MikaelKolehmainen:https://www.trademarknow.com/about(2016)

JussiMikkola:http://www.papula-nevinpat.com/henkilo/mikkola-jussi(2016)

IntellectualCapitaldefinition:http://lexicon.ft.com/Term?term=intellectual-capital

(2016)

CounteractingCopyrightandTrademarkInfringementOnline(DarinKlemchuk,2014)

https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/232405(NOTUSEDYET)

ResearchMethodsforBusinessStudents–M.Lewis,P.Thornhill,A.Saunders(2012)

https://jyu.finna.fi/Record/jykdok.1238378

42

TrademarkNowQuote:https://www.instagram.com/p/BMyDiGojpJQ/?taken-by=trademarknow&hl=en

TenHave,Paul–UnderstandingqualitativeResearchandethnomethodology(2004)

http://site.ebrary.com.ezproxy.jamk.fi:2048/lib/jypoly/reader.action?docID=10080971

SaundersM;Lewis,P;Thornhill,A.(2012)-ResearchMethodsforBusinessStudents

Schaefer,J.M–IPinfrengementonline-Thedarksideofdigitalhttp://www.wipo.int/wipo_magazine/en/2011/02/article_0007.html(2011)

JussiMikkola-TheBesttimetoplantatreewastwentyyearsago.Thesecondbestisnow.Papula-NevinpatBlogpost,April2016http://www.papula-nevinpat.com/the-best-time-to-plant-a-tree-was-twenty-years-ago-the-second-best-is-now/

Warlop,L.Alba,J.W.2004-Sincereflattery:trade-dressimitationandconsumerchoice(JournalofPsychology14,p.21-27)

Zaichowsky,J.L.2006–Thepsychologybehindtrademarkinfringementandcounterfeitingp.13

43

Appendices

APPENDIX1:InterviewquestionsforKolehmainenandMikkola

Backgroundquestion

Taustakysymys

Whoisinterviewed,

profession,specialities

etc.

1.Howwouldyoudescribe

theimportanceofIPRand

thestrategyfortodays

brands?

Mitenkuvailisit

immateriaalioikeuksien

tärkeyttäjaIPstrategiaa

brandeille?

Whatarethemajor

issues

Andmainkeypoints.

2.Whatarethechallenges

todayinIPRforabrands

andcompaniesin

general?

Patents,TMs,Design

rights,copyright,

Wherebrandtendtofail

?

44

Mitähaasteitanykypäivän

yrityksetjabrandit

kohtaavat?

Istherecommontrends

thatrepeat?

3.Howwouldyou

describethevalueofR&D

processinthecompany’s

brandequity?

Mitentärkeäksinäet

tutkimusjakehitystyö

prosessiabrändipääoman

näkökulmasta?

Innovationsmanagement

Future?

4.Whatarecommon

challengesinIPstrategy

fromtheaspectofBrand

Management?

Mitkäovatyleisimmät

haasteetIPstrategiassa

brändinhallinnoinnin/

johtamisen

näkökulmasta?(Brand

Management)

45

5.Whatcouldbe(one)

waytoavoid,oratleast

limitandminimizepiracy

andcounterfeitsin

future?

6.Doyouseeany

changingtrendsintodays

industryfromtheaspect

ofIPR?

Upcoming5years?

7.Anythingtoadd?

APPENDIX2:InterviewquestionsforAhonen

Backgroundquestion

Taustakysymys

Whois

interviewed,

profession,

specialitiesetc.

46

Mitenkuvailisit

immateriaalioikeuksientärkeyttäja

IPstrategiaabrändillenne?

Whatarethe

majorissues

Andmainkey

points.

2.MitähaasteitanäetBrändillänne

immateriaaliloukkauksienosalta?

(Väärennökset,kopiot,

tavaramerkkiloukkaukset)Mitä

muita?Kuinkayleisenäpidätniitä?

Mitähaasteitanykypäivänyritykset

jabranditkohtaavat?

Patents,TMs,

Designrights,

copyright,

Wherebrandtend

tofail?

Istherecommon

trendsthat

repeat?

3.Mitentärkeänämitätutkimusja

kehitystyötäbrändinvahvistamisena

näkökulmasta

Innovations

management

Future?

4.Onkobrändillännetällähetkelle

selkeitähaasteita

immateriaalioikeusstrategiassa?

Onkojotainselkeäähaastealuetta?

5.ToteuttaakoBrändinne

47

brändistrategiassaan

immateriaalioikeusloukkauksia

ennaltaehkäiseväätaivähentävää

toimintaa(tavaramerkit,design)?

Mikälikyllä,osaatkoantaa

käytännönesimerkin?

6.Onkoretkeily/urheilubrändeillä

yleisestiselkeitähaasteita

tavaramerkkienjamuiden

immateriaaliakoskevienosa-aluiden

kanssa?

Upcoming5years?

7.Anythingtoadd?

48

Figures

Figure1:Frombrandawarenesstofinancialvalue

Figure2:Brandtriangle

Figure3:TheFrameworkforbrandmanagement

Figure4:Brandawarenesspyramid

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