The European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) released ‘Influencers and IP’, the first study to examine how online creators across the European Union (EU) understand and engage with intellectual property (IP), and how this shapes what millions of young people see, access and/or buy online.
The study compiled the insights of 300 influencers active on Instagram, TikTok and YouTube, from all 27 EU Member States.
Influencers’ responsibility in ensuring intellectual property compliance
In today´s evolving digital landscape, social media influencers play a growing and powerful role in shaping the attitudes, behaviours and consumption patterns of European citizens, and in particular of young people.
The study indicates that influencers´ content creation is now a professional activity, with 92% of respondents saying they earn revenue from their content, but only 18% holding IP rights (e.g. trade marks or designs). Those who do register IP rights tend to be much more advanced in their business journey: among IP-owning influencers, 55% report they have their own brand and 33% run an online store, compared to 24% and 14%, respectively, among non-IP owners.
The responses also show that most influencers respect intellectual property, with 94% reporting that they have avoided promoting counterfeit products and 93% avoiding pirated digital content. Only 4-5% admit to having promoted IP-infringing goods or content in the past 12 months.
While 96% of influencers feel responsible for the impact of their promotions and 92% say they always verify brand legitimacy, many remain unsure about discussing IP openly. Nearly half (48%) believe that speaking about respect for IP would not affect their follower count, whereas 1 in 6 fear it could reduce their number of followers.
Influencers and artificial intelligence
Regarding artificial intelligence (AI) and its impact on online content creation, influencers admit it is already part of their creative workflow. More than half (51%) use AI often or sometimes, but concerns are rising that their work could be altered and re-purposed, that unfair competition from virtual influencers will continue to gain traction, and that AI generated outputs may infringe on existing IP rights.
Aware of the challenges posed by a dynamic digital landscape, and in line with its Strategic Plan 2030, the EUIPO is committed empowering creators with practical trainings to help them grow their businesses responsibly and contribute to a healthier digital space. It provides outreach and training on intellectual property for creators while collaborating with influencers across the EU on awareness-raising initiatives.
Together with the European Commission, the EUIPO has contributed to the creation and promotion of the Influencer Legal Hub, a dedicated site with a collection of materials including video trainings, written legal briefs, overviews of important European laws and cases, as well as links to relevant national consumer authorities and further resources.
A follow-up study is planned within two years to track developments and explore how creators verify the authenticity of brands, products and services.