Plagiarism, Trade-Dress and the Value of Design

The distinctive identity of a brand has enormous commercial importance. When a competitor copies that identity with a cheaper inferior product, it can jeopardize the heavy investment in creating and designing products. The identification of the original versus a plagiarized knock-off is a critical issue in the marketplace. However, even when the identity is clear, a remaining issue is whether consumers are willing to pay a premium price for the original product. We use conjoint analysis to investigate the identification and valuation of an original vs. a copy. We suggest ways of identifying "trade dress" by distinguishing among the utilitarian, systemic or symbolic aspects of a product.