Johanna Blakely, deputy director of the Norman Lear Center, asked us to rethink our concept of copyright protection using the fashion industry as an example. Her proof was that works of fashion are not copyrighted in the U.S., and poorly protected elsewhere, and yet it has not taken away the incentive to innovate in those fields, or even the ability to differentiate, like major designers such as Dolce and Gabana or Chanel do.

The ruling of the U.S. court system is that fashion is too “utilitarian” to be protected by copyright. Imagine if only one designer was allowed to use buttons, or zippers? She was focused on finding a model of ownership that fosters innovation. Blakley also said that copyright is bad for some industries, and the sales or market share of those industries is far smaller than the share of industries with less copyright protection.

The way forward, in fashion, comedy, and perhaps other industries, is to create a ‘style’ or ‘quality’, a personality of the brand that cannot be ripped off. This is certainly food for thought, and mirrors an online culture that values ‘open source’. To learn more about the Norman Lear Center’s project on copyright, visit http://www.readytoshare.org/

Check out Johanna’s talk below:

Read more Notes from TEDxUSC.