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unusual precaution to take and probably only necessary if you anticipate
an infringement。
Copyright protection in the UK lasts for 70 years a。。er the death of the
person who holds the copyright； or 50 years a。。er publication if this is
later。
Copyright is infringed only if more than a ‘substantial’ part of your work
is reproduced （ie issued for sale to the public） without your permission； but
since there is no formal registration of copyright the question of whether or
not your work is protected usually has to be decided in a court of law。
Designs
You can register the shape； design or decorative features of a mercial
product if it is new； original； never published before or – if already known
188 The Thirty…Day MBA
– never before applied to the product you have in mind。 Protection is
intended to apply to industrial articles to be produced in quantities of more
than 50。 Design registration applies only to features that appeal to the eye
– not to the way the article functions。
To register a design； you should apply to the Design Registry and send
a specimen or photograph of the design plus a registration fee （currently
￡90）。 The specimen or photograph is examined to see whether it is new
or original and plies with other registration requirements。 If it does；
a certification of registration is issued which gives you； the proprietor； the
sole right to manufacture； sell or use in business articles of that design。
Protection lasts for a maximum of 25 years。 You can handle the design
registration yourself； but； again； it might be preferable to let a specialist do
it for you。 There is no register of design agents； but most patent agents are
well versed in design law。
Trademarks and logos
A trademark is the symbol by which the goods or services of a particular
manufacturer or trader can be identified。 It can be a word； a signature； a
monogram； a picture； a logo or a bination of these。
To qualify for registration the trademark must be distinctive； must not
be deceptive and must not be capable of confusion with marks already
registered。 Excluded are misleading marks； national flags； royal crests and
insignia of the armed forces。 A trademark can apply only to tangible goods；
not services （although pressure is mounting for this to be changed）。
To register a trademark； you or your agent should first conduct preliminary
searches at the trademarks branch of the Patent Office to check there
are no conflicting marks already in existence。 You then apply for registration
on the official trademark form and pay a fee （currently ￡200）。 Registration
is initially for 10 years。 A。。er this； it can be renewed for periods of 10 years
at a time； indefinitely。
It isn’t mandatory to register a trademark。 If an unregistered trademark
has been used for some time and could be construed as closely associated
with a product by customers； it will have acquired a ‘reputation’； which will
give it some protection legally； but registration makes it much simpler for
the owners to have recourse against any person who infringes the mark。
Names
Business and domain names involve a cross…section of IP issues。 A good
name； in effect； can bee a one… or two…word summary of your marketing
strategy； Body Shop； Toys ‘R’ Us； Kwik…Fit Exhausts are good examples。
Many panies add a slogan to explain to customers and employees alike
Business Law 189
‘how they do it’。 Cobra Beer’s slogan ‘Unusual thing； excellence’ focuses
a。。ention on quality and distinctiveness。 The name； slogan and logo bine
to be the most visible tip of the iceberg in a corporate munications effort
and as such need a special effort to protect。
Business name
When you choose a business name； you are also choosing an identity； so it
should reflect：
。 who you are；
。 what you do；
。 how you do it。
Given all the marketing investment you will make in your pany
name； you should check with a trademark agent whether you can protect
your chosen name （descriptive words； surnames and place names are not
normally allowed except a。。er long use）。 Also； check if the name is one of
the 90 or ‘controlled’ names such as bank； royal or international for which
special permission is needed。 Limited panies have to submit their
choice of name to the panies Registration Office along with the other
documents required for registration。 It will be accepted unless there is
another pany with that name on the register or the Registrar considers
the name to be obscene； offensive or illegal。
Registering domains
Internet presence requires a domain name； ideally one that captures the
essence of your business neatly so that you will e up readily on search
engines and is as close as possible to your business name。 Once a business
name is registered as a trademark （see earlier in this chapter）； you may （as
current case law develops） be able to prevent another business from using
it as a domain name on the internet。
Registering a domain name is simple； but as hundreds of domain names
are registered every day and you must choose a name that has not already
been registered； you need to have a selection of domain names to hand in
case your first choice is unavailable。 These need only be slight variations；
for example Cobra Beer could have been listed as Cobra…Beer； CobraBeer
or even Cobra Indian Beer； if the original name was not available。 These
would all have been more or less equally effective in terms of search engine
visibility。
190 The Thirty…Day MBA
Help and advice on intellectual property
matters
。 UK Intellectual Property Office （ipo。gov。uk） has all the information
needed to patent； trademark； copyright or register a design。
。 International intellectual property information at： European Patent
Office （epo）； US Patent and Trade Mark Office （uspto。
gov） and the World Intellectual Property Association （wipo。int）。
。 The Chartered Institute of Patents and A。。orneys （cipa。uk）
and the Institute of Trade Mark A。。orneys （itma。uk）； despite
their specialized…sounding names； can help with every aspect of IP；
including finding you a local adviser。