The cost of protection increases with the territorial extent, but we can formulate for the client the strategy of minimal cost.
In particular, by choosing only the geographical areas that really matter and by ignoring or eliminating the fruitless ones, costs drop significantly.
We remind that the rights conferred by a design enable the owner to use it exclusively and to prevent third parties from using it without his consent. In particular, as acts of unlawful use there are the manufacture, supply, marketing, importing, exporting or using of a product in which the design or model is incorporated or to which is applied, and also the possess of such a product for those purposes.
Therefore, in the State wherein the owner has an active design, he can strategically monopolize the product to which it is applied.
It should be noted that the exclusive rights extend to any design which does not produce on the informed user a different overall impression. Despite this definition being a little criptic, the sense is that design protect not only what is depicted in the filed views, but also "similar" variants. The power of protection is obvious.
If you want to protect a design in several states, you do not need to do this for all at the same time.
It is possible to claim the right of priority connected to a first prior design application filed in a member state of the Paris Convention or the World Trade Organization (or in a state that guarantees the right of reciprocity). In practice you can make a first filing of a design and, within 6 months from the date of the first filing, file a further application in other states, with the advantage of keeping the first filing date.
Costs are deferred and the strategic business situation can ripen in the meantime.
As with any patent well done, the key is to define properly and at best the desired protection.
In designs what matters is the images/figures being filed.
The type and number of images/figures to be filed is not something as simple as it seems. Several companies gained bitter disappointment for having stored in portfolio a design that did not protect well or enough their product.
We put at your service our experience and technical knowledge to get you a stronger design.