Information about Industrial Design
- What is an Industrial Design?
Design is the aesthetic or ornamental aspect of a product. The term "design" is used to define three-dimensional features (of shape and surface), as well as those of two-dimensional features (patterns, lines or colors), applied to industrial products, which give the product an attractive appearance to the consumer.
- Types of Industrial Designs
The Three-Dimensional Design is:
A three-dimensional creation (shape) that gives the product a special appearance, but that does not furnish the product of any technical effect
The two-dimensional design is: A two-dimensional creation, patterns, lines or colours that are added to products to give them a special look, but that does not give them a technical effect. Designs are applied to a large number of products from different sectors of industry and trade, ranging from complex instruments with a special and exclusive use (such as machinery, vehicles, tools, engines, computers, architectural structures, etc.) to simple or everyday items (like clothing, jewelry, electrical appliances, toys and furniture). National legislation on industrial designs protects these products based on their aesthetic features, excluding from protection any technical or functional features of the products to which it applies.
- What value does design have for a company, individual or its creator?
Industrial design is like a marketing feature; The reason for including the design in a particular product is to draw the consumer's attention to the product which has been put on the market for sale.
The greater the success that the design achieves in the market, the greater will the economic value be for the company.
Industrial design is an exclusive right (registered designs offer greater protection and more advantages than unregistered designs). Just like all industrial property rights, a design can also be granted, licensed, mortgaged or transferred. Design as an element that enhances a company's competitive advantage. When the practical usefulness of an ordinary product is not substantially distinct from that of another product fulfilling the same function (as in most of the cases), the consumer will base his choice on the product design. This means that the consumer will decide to buy the most attractive, most original, most seductive product, the one with the best design.
- Why is industrial design protection recommended?
The importance of industrial design protection is based on the fact that this design increases the commercial value of the product for which it is applied. Given this fact, industrial design legislation provides legal protection for designers against copying. Indeed, through application and registration at a competent office, the design holder acquires an exclusive right over the creation. The registration of an industrial design provides a secure basis for the holder, with legal protection of his rights and interests.
- How is an industrial design legally protected?
Ways to protection:
- As Industrial Property
So that an industrial design is protected as a design it must be new, in other words, ensure that the product form is not yet known before protection is sought. Depending on the specific requirements of the legislation in question, the design must be original, or have individual features, or be applied to a product that fulfils a function of use.
- Some designs are conceived and considered works of art and so in some cases, they are automatically protected by copyright law. Regardless of whether the design enjoys the protection of intellectual property, it is also appropriate to apply for registration as industrial design (this takes into account the fact that not all legal systems allow coexistence of these two forms of protection), as protection and mechanisms protections recognized by industrial property laws are more effective.
- Industrial design is also protected by competition law. In the same way, the holder of the design may file a claim for court decisions, to stop or prevent the continuation of any damage from the violation of his rights and to guarantee the effective and real implementation of the decisions in the future.
Industrial design registration procedures
- Procedures for registration of industrial designs
The General Directorate of Industrial Property examines the application according tothe requirements of law 9947 dated 07.07.2008 "On Industrial Property" regarding the regularity of the received application.
Industrial design, means the features of the external form of a product, in general, the ornamental or aesthetic aspect of a product, as a whole or of its parts, which gives it a special appearance and which is not excluded from protection.
1.1 Filing date of an application
The filing date of the application for registration of a design is considered the date when the GDIP receives the request. Two or more designs may be the subject of the same application, provided that they belong to the same class, according to the Locarno International Classification. A national regular application is any application that has met the necessary requirements to obtain a filing date.
1.2 Examination of formalities
GDIP, within three months from the date of receipt of the application for registration of a design, conducts a preliminary examination of the application, to see if it is according to the requirements of Article 119 of the same law and also decides the date of filing of the application or its priority date, if claimed for priority. If all the requirements of the above article are not met, the GDIP requires the applicant to meet all of these requirements within three months from the date of notification. If the applicant does not fill in the required information, the GDIP rejects the application and notifies the applicant in writing.
1.3 Publication of application
When the application for registration of a design is filed according to the requirements of this law, the data for this application is published in the bulletin of GDIP.
1.4 Opposition to an industrial design
Opposition to a published design may be filed within 3 months from the date of publication, against payment of the relevant fee. Data on the manner of opposition filing the opposition and the necessary procedure are provided in the regulation of industrial designs.
The GDIP Board of Appeal examines whether the opposition filed is according tothe provisions provided by law. Each party has the right to participate in the opposition review process and to present its arguments, orally or in writing, within a period of time determined by the Board of Appeal. During the review, the Board of Appeal has the right to ask the parties to submit additional materials and other documents. The Board of Appeal reviews the opposition, within three months from the date of submission and notifies the parties of the decision taken. The decision of the Board of Appeal for the opposition can be appealed in court, within 30 days from the date of receipt of notice of the board decision.
1.5 Industrial design registration
GDIP, within three months from the approval of the filing date, examines whether the application complies with the requirements of law. According to the results of the examination, the examiner decides whether to register or reject the design and notifies the applicant. When the decision is in favour of registration, the applicant is required to pay the registration fee, after the quarterly period from the date of publication. GDIP rejects the application for design registration, if the requirements provided in Article 115 of the law are not met. If the applicant does not pay the registration fee within the specified period, the GDIP rejects the application for design registration. The registered design is published in the GDIP bulletin.
1.6 Duration and renewal of registration
The registration of a design is valid for 5 years, starting from the date of filing the application for its registration. The registration may be renewed, against a fixed fee for an additional period of five years, up to 25 years, from the date of filing of the application for registration of the design.
- National procedures to apply for Industrial Design in the Republic of Albania
Definition and terms of protection
1. For this law:
a) "Industrial design" (hereinafter "design"), means the features of the external form of a product, in general, the decorative or aesthetic aspect of a product, as a whole or of its parts, which gives it a special appearance and which is not excluded from the protection, according to point 3 of this article.
b) "Product" is any article, manufactured in an industrial or artisanal manner, including parts, intended to be combined into a complex product, packaging, aesthetic representation, graphic symbols and typographic prints, but excluding computer programs.
c) "Complex product" is a product, which is composed of multiple components, which can be replaced, allowing the dissolution and reshaping of the product.
ç) Industrial designs can be two-dimensional, three-dimensional or a combination thereof.
Industrial designs are protected through national and international registration. The international route is made possible through the Hague Act and the Geneva Act.
LAW ON INDUSTRIAL DESIGNS