Lamphun, Thailand - What does Champagne, France's famous sparkling wine, have in common with brocade silk produced in northern Thailand? Not much, except that both products are protected by Geographic Indication intellectual property rights.

Lamphun brocade silk received a Geographic Indication (GI) certificate in October from Thailand's Intellectual Property Rights Department, making it one of 23 Thai products to be registered for domestic protection.

In south-east Asia, Thailand ranks first in terms of registered GIs, a little-known form of intellectual property right that is only beginning to take off in Asia.