IGI IP Update
ACID’s first trade association partnership communication ip update (1) dedicated to IGI members goes out this month. IGI has joined forces with ACID to work closely to raise awareness about intellectual property issues and to develop a keen insight into the problems which IGI members face through IP theft. Combined force means a stronger voice against design theft. We will also concentrate on IP as a positive force for mergers, acquisitions and collaborative design. ACID has negotiated a special membership package for IGI members with a valuable 20% discount off membership fees and initial joining fees.
Some Key benefits of ACID membership include:
Access to IP legal hotline for initial free advice
Free use of Design Data Bank
Unlimited use of the Membership of ACID logo to communicate your anti copying strategy
IP health checks and audits, free mediation support at certain exhibitions….
Our objective in these regular ip update communications will be to highlight intellectual property issues which we feel will be of value to IGI, interact through joint communication and establish ACID as the first port of call to raise awareness about intellectual property issues within the wall coverings sector.
RELYING ON UNREGISTERED DESIGN RIGHTS
The ACID Design Data Bank is a free register for all ACID members to deposit their new designs if relying on unregistered Design right (either UK or EU). Registering does not add to your rights but provides third party evidential proof of the date it is received by the ACID office therefore providing valuable independent evidence or “prior art”. Under UK unregistered design originators are automatically protected for 10 years. However, in the UK after 5 years a third party may approach you to manufacture the product under a reasonable licence arrangement. For those in Europe, under unregistered Community design you are automatically protected for a period of 3 years only from the date the product is first shown on the market. During the first year you have 12 months in which you can register a new design with the European Community www.oami.europa.eu ACID always recommends official registration if at all possible because the design owner will have monopoly rights and protection for 25 years. There is a new single application through The World Intellectual Property Office www.wipo.int which not only offers design protection in 27 EU member states but in a further 20 countries who have all signed up to The Hague Agreement.
IN DECEMBER IT IS HOPED THAT THE USA AND JAPAN WILL BECOME SIGNATORIES BROADENING THE SCOPE OF PROTECTION
