The sports industry holds a crucial position in the commercialization and investment interest. The sports industry has always been an extensive sector worldwide, combining entertainment, amusements, culture, and commercial business.
The range of Intellectual Property Rights is extensive in the sporting sphere. Intellectual Property Rights is vested in almost every segment of the sports industry, involving patents that encourage technological improvements for better sporting facilities.
The purpose of patenting in sports is commercialization. Sports have created opportunities for individual gains and contributed to the country's economic growth. In the sports industry, the patent title is advantageous for agreements that involve the utilization of the talent of the sportsman in a legal course, protecting their work, images, personality rights, etc., preventing any misuse for profit.
In India, the Indian Premier League (IPL), Hockey India League, Indian Badminton League, Pro-Kabaddi, Indian Super League, and various teams have been trained, owned by individuals, or through partnership. The teams are contracted to such an event to prevent the chain of titles from becoming an issue. The title in trademark, copyright, and other IPRs are ascertained in a way that may form part of such an event.
Despite several advantages, due to obvious reasons such as lack of legal formulation, some problems occur out of intellectual property protection in sports.
The recent T20 format and IPL (Indian Premier League) have lifted the veil separating sports and commerce, which is now in the game's lead. Businesses in the games have commenced huge scams in the recent past due to massive financial stakes, match-fixing, gambling, doping, and other issues. The Indian government is also investigating to streamline the industry, retaining every party's interest in mind, including the players, teams, sponsors, and the public.
Various incidents of unauthorized use of Intellectual Property ultimately led to major financial disputes. With an expansion in the economic exploration of intellectual property rights in sports, various legal issues that can arise in the sports industry include infringement and violation of the owner's intellectual property rights.
India urgently needs to formulate robust laws to implement IP rights in sports. The patent holders in sports should be conscious of the significance of Intellectual Property Rights and preserve them by appropriate registration, obtaining licenses, securing contracts to protect the benefit of sports and sporting assets, and actively guarding the intellectual property against infringement and violation.