The question of intellectual property is becoming more and more topical as technology evolves. How do brands cope with growing strength of pirate online resources and what are the ways to please your customer without going bankrupt?
Patents are usually associated with security of business model; they protect ideas from fraudulent using. But they can also be a heavy, sometimes unnecessary burden. Elon Musk, the creator of PayPal and SpaceX, now CEO of Tesla Motors has announced that all the Tesla patents are now equivalent to open source. It is quite safe to say that this is a big step towards society without any issues of intellectual property. As Musk says, every patent just makes your lawyer a bit wealthier and is in fact “a lottery ticket to a lawsuit”. So those businesses that don’t depend on securing their patents, not only are robust against piracy, but also they are naturally protected from excessive legal costs.
Another aspect of intellectual property problem is copyright. Consumer group Choice unveiled a significant gap in Foxtel’s business model. Foxtel is the exclusive broadcaster of “Game of Thrones” series in Australia, and about 500,000 Australians watch each episode via a paid subscription. But apparently, twice more Australians download it illegally. Choice gave a detailed explanation of how Foxtel prevents easy access to the series for those who wish to pay. Given that customers have to subscribe to the whole package of channels even if they’re interested only in one of them, imagine how good a TV show must be to carry 20 more channels on its back. This point raises a question: are all the Foxtel viewers happy with this situation? Could Foxtel acquire new subscribers by changing its business model to a more flexible one? At the end of the day, the fight for copyright shouldn’t jeopardise customer experience, no matter how rightful it is.
Written by: Anna Usupova – Quantitative Specialist, THINK Global Research
For further information on THINK Global Research, please contact Kristy Ihle (Managing Director) at info@thinkglobalresearch.com.
