I'm looking for two things related to authenticity.
A broader description of the term and definition of what's authentic
and what's not - and most importantly what?s makes the difference.
A formula (almost mathematical) helping to determine if something is
authentic or not.

Good luck,

martin

Unless I'm misunderstanding your meaning, I doubt that sweeping
generalizations about authenticity would be very useful. Consider how
very different the criteria would be for different items. Could there
be a single "formula" that would verify the authenticity of a $20
bill, a bottle of wine, a designer tee-shirt, and a Van Gogh?

pinkfreud-ga,
You are absolutly right. I am however trying to nail down some sort of
"rule of thumb" related to sensory branding - how far can you go
without going to far - combining 3-5 criteria in the formula as
criteria of evaluation would probably make this possible - but it's
not easy. Anyway if you find something related to this feel free to
let me know.

Good luck and thanks for your thoughts on this.

Martin

I would say that an authentic item would be one that fits every level
of definition of the product description.

If we are talking about brand, then an authentic item is one that is
made by the company or person who first created the brand and thus
defined the item to begin with.

So, to use Pink?s example ?

An authentic $20 bill would be one made by the government that issued
the money and defined its value and terms of use.

An authentic Château Mouton-Rothschild 1967 Cabernet Sauvignon would
be a bottle of wine of that type, made by that company, in that year.

An Authentic Donna Karan designer tee-shirt is one designed by Donna
Karan and produced through her company.

An authentic Van Gogh is a painting by ? well? Van Gogh. :-)

Authenticity, used this way, would apply to any level of definition of
the product. Going back to our wine, we could say it is an authentic
French wine as defined by geography?all wines produced in France are,
by definition, French.  It is an authentic Cabernet Sauvignon as
defined by grape growers who named the grapes. It is an authentic 1967
as defined by the calendar year in which the grapes were grown. And it
is an authentic Château Mouton-Rothschild because it was made by that
company.

It could, instead, be fake (inauthentic) on one or more of those
levels, while remaining authentic on others. Suppose someone else grew
Cabernet Sauvignon grapes in France in 1967 and bottled their wine in
a Château Mouton-Rothschild bottle. Even if it is equivalent in taste,
quality, and on every other level, it would not be a Château
Mouton-Rothschild. It would just be an authentic 1967 Cabernet
Sauvignon.

The litmus test would be to identify the operative term(s) in the
product description, decide who sets the standard or definition for
those terms, define the terms, and then see if the product meets those
definitions and on how many levels.

Why don?t you pick some examples and let?s work through them to see if
the definition and process works.

-K~

HI knowledge_seeker-ga,
Thanks for your feedback. I would love to continue the dialogue about
this. If at all possible I would however prefer to run this particular
discussion offline. Let me know your thoughts - and what's "legal"
according to your Google agreement.

All the best,

Martin

Hi lindstrom,

Perhaps the following webpage could be of some help? All of Pink's
examples could be evaluated for authenticity using these fourteen
steps.

Fourteen Steps of Evaluation:
   I Over-all Appearance
  II Form 
 III Ornament 
  IV Color 
   V Analysis of Materials
  VI Techniques Employed by the Craftsman
 VII Trade Practices
VIII Function
  IX Style
   X Date
  XI Attribution
 XII History of the Object and Its Ownership
XIII Condition
 XIV Appraisal or Evaluation

http://www.wmblairltd.com/resources/connois.htm

hummer

Hi Martin, 

I would be very interested in following up this discussion, however
researchers are not allowed to provide contact information in order to
work outside of Google Answers. I have made a proposal to the Google
Editors regarding a possible way we can do this and am awaiting their
reply. Will let you know.

If not, perhaps we can find a way to discuss it here. 

Will be in touch ..

-K~

Hi Martin, 

The editors have, not unexpectedly, nixed my plan. Is there another
way we can do this?

-K~

Hi knowledge_seeker-ga,
I would love to find an alternative solution but it doesn?t look good
as the materials are confidential and not allowed to be shared in a
open forum. Sorry - but please feel free to contact me if you have any
ideas.

All the best,

martin