From football to tennis to ice skating, in every sporting field, inventors and creators are working behind the scenes to push the boundaries of athletic performance, improve audience experience and bring sports events to every home.
IP rights – and the legal protection they give – are the basis for key business transactions that secure the economic value of sports and push the industry forward. Thanks to steady industry growth, sporting organizations can finance high-profile sports events and promote sports development worldwide. The sports industry also contributes to the world economy, creating jobs and developing public infrastructure.
Several IP rights may protect a sports shoe:
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Reference Guide to Sustaining Sport and its Development through Intellectual Property Rights
Sports show intellectual property (IP) in action. Patents encourage technological advances that result in better sporting equipment. Trademarks, brands and designs contribute to the distinct identity of events, teams and their gear. Copyright-related rights generate the revenues needed for broadcasters to invest in the costly undertaking of broadcasting sports events to fans worldwide. IP rights are the basis of licensing and merchandising agreements that earn revenues to support the development of the sports industry.
From the sports shoe to the swimsuit and the tennis racket to the football, sports technologists have applied their ingenuity, creativity and expertise to develop better and safer equipment in the quest for sporting excellence.
Brands are critical for creating business value, and the sports business is no exception. Strong brands command customer loyalty and premium prices, constituting valuable assets that drive company revenue and growth.
The influence of design in the world of sport is far-reaching. Where image and aesthetics are involved, so too is design, and where new materials emerge, aesthetics or design soon follow.
Copyright and related rights, particularly those relating to broadcasting organizations, underpin the relationship between sports and television and other media.
By acquiring IP rights and using them strategically, sports organizations and other rights owners can protect and increase their income-generating potential.
What kind of IP-related disputes are common in the sports area, and how to resolve them.
Find more stories on how IP stimulates the business of sports in theseWIPO Magazine articles.
Some 4,400 athletes with disabilities competed for gold during the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games. IP protected sports prostheses were one of the key devices they used to achieve their goals.
Dr. Cooper – Paralympian, serial inventor, army veteran, engineer, marathon racer – discusses his ground-breaking work and the importance of IP in bringing it to the market.
An icon of the Olympic Games, the Olympic torch symbolizes hope and peace. The Olympic torch relay, however, is a modern invention, first introduced in the 1936 Summer Olympic Games in Berlin.
Kenyan entrepreneur Navalayo Osembo-Ombati gave up a job at the United Nations in New York to set up a running shoes business in Kenya, fulfilling her dream of building on Kenya’s rich sporting heritage.