Licensing Basics

What is Licensing?
The business of granting the right to use a legally protected trademark, copyright name, graphic, logo, slogan, likeness, or other similar intellectual property in conjunction with a product or service for a prescribed amount of time in a specific geographic area in exchange for a defined payment or series of payments in the form of royalties or fees.

A Licensing Example
Licensing has enabled Harley-Davidson (the brand owner, or “licensor”) to extend its brand into entirely new categories. Licensees (manufacturers) use the famous black and orange Harley-Davidson logo, motorcycle silhouettes and other intellectual property to develop and market brand-right, officially licensed products.