A Registered Design is the legal concept aimed at protecting the external shape of a product.
It is through the registration of the Design that one obtains the exclusive right and therefore the monopoly for a particular "external shape."
Without the registration of the external shape of a product, the product becomes vulnerable to imitation, including slavish imitation, by competitors, who are often from Eastern Asia.
In a globalized world in which competing with imitations of one's own products is commonplace, a Registered Design offers the best possible protection. The creation of instruments such as the Registered Community Design and the International Model make coverage of foreign territories ever more cost-efficient and effective.
The manner in which a Registered Design is filed is essential in determining the scope of the rights that are attached to it, as well as for the possibility of it being "exported" to other Countries.
Entrepreneurs very often believe that a Copyright can effectively protect an industrial product especially where it involves a Designer. More correctly, Copyrights are mainly intended to protect works having artistic value and the large majority of Judgments of Italian Courts has excluded the existence of Copyrights on Industrial Design products, including in the case of those created by famous Designers. For example, Le Corbusier's famous "chaise longue" has also been imitated in a slavish manner insofar as it has not obtained copyright protection.
In particular, Design Registration in China is quite problematic and it is only possible to guarantee a favorable result when working through a serious professional.
GIAMBROCONO & C. S.p.A., operating on a worldwide level, can ably assist any entrepreneur with the protection of their own product.