The European Commission announced on Thursday 29 April the launch of two consultations under the Intellectual Property Action Plan.
The first concerns industrial design protection, which relates to rights protecting the appearance of a product. Here, the institution explains, the public consultation aims to clarify the improvements to be made to the current European rules and the possible review of the Community Design Regulation (Regulation 6/2002) as well as the Directive on the legal protection of designs (98/71/EC).
The second public consultation concerns the EU-wide protection of geographical indications for non-agricultural products (i.e., craft and industrial products such as Opinel knives or Herend porcelain). Here, the European Commission wants to determine whether or not to create a European system of protection for geographical indications.
Both public consultations will remain open through 22 July 2021.
At the end of November 2020, the European Commission presented an action plan on intellectual property, in line with the March industrial strategy, with a view to better protecting economic operators, in particular SMEs, to protect their expertise and innovations (see EUROPE 12609/11).
To access the consultation on geographical indications for non-agricultural products: https://bit.ly/2PCIypg
To see the consultation on Community designs: https://bit.ly/3eJslXA (Original version in French by Pascal Hansens)