Read this article about the fashion industry and choose the best heading for the article.

The audience gasps. Fashion editors scribble notes. Cameras flash. As the model sashays down the catwalk, it’s clear to everyone that this is going to be the must-have dress of the season. And long before the applause has died down, photos of the dress have been sent to manufacturers, who will then copy and produce knockoff versions for a fraction of the designer’s price tag.

Blatant theft of ideas, or flattering imitation and extra publicity? The fashion industry, and even designers themselves, can’t decide whether the massive knockoff industry is a good or bad thing. Some fashion houses are taking retailers to court for selling copies that they say are too close to the original article. They argue not only that they are losing sales, but that copies inferior in quality affect their reputation. Designer bag companies in particular claim that poorly made knockoff bags that fall apart all too soon have a negative effect on their image.

Other designers feel that the proliferation of cheap copies in high street stores can only be a good thing. They argue that those who buy a 50 euro imitation would never be able to afford the 5,000 euro original anyway, and that a design that is copied by all popular retailers increases the profile of the fashion house that produced it. Everyone knows who it’s been copied from, and so no harm is done. There is also a theory that copying benefits the fashion industry by increasing creativity. As new designs rapidly become popular trends, designers have to come up with even newer ideas to keep the real fashionistas happy.

Counterfeiting, which involves the blatant copying of brand names and logos, is of course outlawed. So would it be possible to legislate against the greyer area of knockoffs? European designers have some protection under law, but that hasn’t stopped a thriving knockoff business in high street stores. Designers in the US have no protection at the moment, as fashion design is historically considered a craft, not an art, and outside the scope of copyright protection. Policing copyright on fashion would be particularly difficult. Knockoff versions can be in the shops within two or three days of a fashion show, before the original is even available for sale, so how can you prove who had the idea first?

Check how well you have understood the text.  Are these statements true or false?