Ch.8 Industrial Designs

Abstract

This chapter focuses on industrial designs, which are generally defined as features of ornamentation applied to an article. They consist of the shape, configuration, pattern, or ornament—or a combination thereof—of a product that gives it eye-appeal. Industrial designs normally exclude those designs determined solely by their utilitarian function on an article. The protection of industrial designs is addressed in the Trade-related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) Agreement by only two Articles. Article 25 defines the requirements for protection, and Article 26 the extent of exclusive rights and the admissible exceptions. This scant treatment reflects the fact that the protection of industrial designs had a low priority in the TRIPS negotiations for the US and other countries, except perhaps the European Communities (EC), which aimed at enhancing such protection, of particular value, for instance, for fashion industries.