The intellectual property of any company must be protected. Without the measures taken, the whole business could be at risk. Let's take a closer look at the topic of brand protection and what role Distributed Ledger technology – DLT – plays in this.
The choice of raw materials, production and distribution of goods are not all the key concerns in doing business. Information property, protection from counterfeits, fake accounts and websites is also necessary for the normal functioning and maintaining the reputation of the company.
What is Brand Abuse for Companies
Brand abuse can lead to critical consequences for the company. Original products, protected by intellectual property, are more expensive then fake products. Distribution of counterfeited products means a drop in sales and subsequently a deterioration in reputation.
The deterioration of reputation is even more unprofitable, because it leads buyers to avoid the brand in favor of more reliable companies. Partners of the company affected by counterfeiting must do the same. Loss of trust between long-time partners can be extremely damaging for business.
Danger to Businesses and Consumers
Counterfeiting harms both companies and consumers who risk their health by using substandard products. At the same time, the fight against counterfeiting is a very long, expensive and not very effective process. The work of lawyers in trying to get rid of forgery rarely has the desired effect.
Brand abuse is a global problem affecting more than 25 sectors of the market. Electronics, cars, pharmaceuticals, wine and spirits, clothing, cosmetics, luxury food and other high-end consumer goods are at risk from threats such as counterfeiting, leakage and theft. All this suggests that it is better to protect against brand abuse preventively. The best way out here is to use new information protection technologies.
Technology Provides Transparency, Trust and Safety
Transparency of the company means not only greater trust of consumers and partners, but also the lack of opportunities for manipulation and counterfeiting.
Digitization of all the processes with DLT and particularly
Blockchain technology stands on the launch of a special distributed database where any data is protected from unauthorized change. Documents, origin, production data, distributions, recorded step by step to the blockchain, are worth a special trust.
Traceability and constant updating of information about the internal work of the brand play an important role in product safety. The use of labels and records in the blockchain about each batch of products delivered makes buyers confident in product they are buying. At the same time, in case of any production problems, inconsistencies, the labeled product is easier and faster to identify, recall and replace.
Each distribution point can check whether they have received the proper codes sent to the site and verify the authenticity and safety of the products.
These initiatives can limit losses and provide a higher degree of consumer confidence. At the same time, blockchain leaves an opportunity for brands to hide some information about production secrets, while leaving a degree of trust of the same high. In order to mark the secret pieces of information, a hash system is used to identify any mismatch of information without disclosing the information itself.
Solution for Quality and Safety
Creating a local blockchain network for companies is a more
reasonable solution in modern realities. Tracking fake stores, productions, label uses requires a lot of effort. However, having a stable and transparent blockchain-based database with all the official information about the company's work, make separating the grains from the chaff simple and fast not only for the company’s lawyers, but also for consumers who deserve to receive quality and safe products.
