Why Aren’t Industrial Design Right Extendable?
Law Number 31 of 2000 concerning Industrial Designs (Industrial Design Law) adopted the provisions of the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPs Agreement).
Article 1 of Industrial design law explains that industrial design constitutes a creation on the shape, configuration, or the composition of lines or colours, or lines and colours, or the combination thereof in a three or two dimensional form which gives aesthetic impression and can be realized in a three or two dimensional pattern and used to produce a product, goods or an industrial commodity and a handy craft.
According to Article 5 of Industrial Design Law, the Protection of Industrial Design Rights is granted for a period of 10 (ten) years from the Filing Date. And, there is no explanation in the Industrial Design Law regarding the extension of the protection of the Industrial Design Right. From the date of receipt of the application, this period cannot be extended. Within that time limit, the designer/design right holder has the special right to use, manufacture, sell, export and or distribute the goods produced from the protected industrial design, including granting licenses to other parties based on the license agreement.
Industrial Design Law does not regulate the extension of the protection period because the TRIPs Agreement also does not regulate the extension of the protection period for Industrial Design Rights.
After the Industrial Design protection period expires, the Industrial Design works will become Public Domain (owned by the general public), meaning that anyone may produce and use the Design without haing to ask permission or pay royalty fees to the original designer.
Apart from not being regulated in the TRIPs Agreement, the reasons for the lack of extension for industrial design protection are to prevent monopolies. This is a contrast to patents, which could have similarities with patents belonging to other people/companies, but there still could be an element of novelty that makes patents changeable.
In addition, the design of a product tends to change according to the times. For example, the design of a particular brand of mobile phone, may change and be upgraded every year. With the change in the design of the cellphone, it is necessary to register a new cellphone design again, thus making it unlikely for a particular design to last for more than 10 years.
Am Badar & Am Badar as Intellectual Property consultants in Indonesia, have helped many clients both at home and abroad in guaranteeing Intellectual Property rights in Indonesia. If Partners have any problems regarding Industrial Design, please don’t hesitate to contact us at marketing@ambadar.co.id. Our experienced consultants will be happy to assist you.
Source:
- Law No. 31 Tahun 2000 on Industrial Design
