Unique product design, as an important factor for attracting consumers, has always been attached great importance by manufacturers and sellers. Therefore, the legislation and protection of designs have also drawn great attention from national governments and international organizations. Today, the process for protecting designs varies from one country to another. In some countries, designs are filed as “registered designs,” and in other jurisdictions, designs are protected under patent law as “design patents,” which are usually only granted after a thorough examination of the design application by the IP office.
In November 2024, the Diplomatic Conference on Design Law, organized by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), was held in Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia, where the following 18 delegations jointly signed on November 22, 2024, the Riyadh Design Law Treaty: Bosnia and Herzegovina, Central African Republic, Congo, Costa Rica, Côte d’Ivoire, Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Gambia, Ghana, Lebanon, Morocco, Paraguay, Philippines, Republic of Moldova, Sao Tome and Principe, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Uzbekistan, Zimbabwe.
According to WIPO’s introduction, the Treaty will:
set a maximum list of indications or elements that designers must submit with an application, to help designers wishing to file an application know exactly what indications or elements may be required.
allow applicants to choose how they represent the design in an application (drawings, photographs, or, if admitted by the IP office, video).
allow applicants to include several designs in a single application, under certain conditions.
set out requirements for the granting of a filing date.
provide for a grace period of 12 months following a first disclosure of the design, during which such disclosure will not affect its validity for registration.
allow applicants to keep their designs unpublished for at least six months after having secured a filing date.
provide relief measures and offer some flexibility to applicants to prevent them from losing their rights if they miss a deadline.
simplify the procedure for requesting the renewal of a design registration.
furthers the introduction of e-filing systems for designs and the electronic exchange of priority documents.
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