Your chance to help protect design

The Government is aiming to clarify the currently rather complicated and occasionally mystifying world of intellectual property in design.

The Intellectual Property Office has launched a consultation – running until 2 October – into the issue.

It’s looking at a series of proposals around simplifying the laws and improving the enforcement regime, and you can make your voice heard here: www.ipo.gov.uk.

Here’s why you should contribute. The world of intellectual property is, at present, often a baffling and unclear one, leaving designers open to exploitation.

For example, at a recent Designer Breakfast on the issue, Person Lloyd’s Luke Pearson said his consultancy has been involved in a pitch for a project that could have been worth £2 million for the client – and Pearson Lloyd was asked to hand over its IP for a token fee of £5000.

But, the issue for design is that there is no one-size-fits-all solution when it comes to IP and copyright, which is something that the IPO, to its credit, seems to have realised, offering different proposals for different-sized consultancies and those working in different markets.

This is why it’s important for designers and consultancies and in all situations to join this consultation – as the more diverse the voices are, the more wide-ranging and effective any legislation can be.

Now back to the Olympics. Action is starting in the athletics today…