LEVI STRAUSS & CO.
Managing such a large portfolio is a big job and therefore it doesn’t make sense for the company to deal with everything in-house. When the time comes to litigate, or even to send a cease and desist letter, Levi Strauss & Co. will turn to its global IP partner for counsel. Townsend Townsend and Crew is a California-based law firm that co-ordinates Levi Strauss & Co.’s efforts with local counsel worldwide. “Having one firm as a global partner has really worked to our advantage,” Onda says. “Tey are able to take an overview, to see the lay of the land, and provide us with very strategic advice.”
However, in common with any company that sells non-perishable consumer goods, Levi Strauss & Co. is faced with the challenge of policing its IP in a world where rigid geographical boundaries are increasingly irrelevant. Te Internet provides very particular challenges to big brands, and not just because there are the added problems of dealing with search-term keywords and domain name management.
Onda says: “Infringements on the Internet are a different beast from bricks and mortar infringement in that they can appear on the Internet one day and disappear then next...Te strategy is a bit
different, but generally, once we identify the source behind the infringement or counterfeit product, it’s pursued very much as we would a bricks and mortar retailer. Te more difficult task is finding out the source on the Internet.”
Many of these strategies are not unique to Levi Strauss & Co. Any company that is serious about protecting its IP should have similar systems in place. But what really sets the company apart, Onda says, is the experience and reputation that comes with being one of the first kids on the block.
“Te company has a long history of having successfully pursued hundreds and hundreds of infringements worldwide,” he says. “Our past history speaks for itself. Our efforts have been recognised by brand enforcement agencies in the apparel field around the world. We’re founding members of the International AntiCounterfeiting Coalition, and we’ve been considered a pioneer in the whole area of trademark protection. Even third parties or our competitors will come to us for guidance in protecting their intellectual property, so I think all that speaks to the success of our efforts.”
Some have suggested that the recent strength of Levi Strauss & Co.’s enforcement efforts has as much to do with falling sales and market share as it does with any particularly innovative approach. Perhaps there is a correlation between difficult business environments and enforcement activity.
Onda responds emphatically to the suggestion: “Our enforcement efforts have remained consistent across business environments good and bad. If there has been a change, it’s because there are just more denim brands out there than there were in the past, so in relation to that, our enforcement activity may increase. But as a brand owner, we have a responsibility to our customers, shareholders and lenders to protect the value of our trademarks.”
When Levi Strauss filed that first patent 137 years ago, he surely had a similar sentiment in mind. As Onda puts it: “Anyone can make a pair of jeans, but only we can make an authentic pair of Levi’s jeans.”
www.worldipreview.com
World Intellectual Property Review May/June 2010
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