Issue
What IP issues may be involved in protecting peripheral computer products during advertising?
Rules of Law
In the U.S., designs, names, symbols, and other aspects of computer products are protected by the Lanham Act. Such protection is aimed at defeating the unfair competition. Unfair advertising practices can damage the sales of a computer company, drastically. This circumstance happens when customers purchase inferior products form unfair competitors, thinking they are products from the victim companies. In the long run, the victim company experiences decreased sales because of the sale of inferior products.
In the scenario above, the victim company can claim the protection and enforcement of their Intellectual Property rights from the court. The company must prove that it is the first to have the said design; the unfair company copied the said design, in inferior quality, to confuse customers; and the unfair company had prior knowledge of the victim company’s use of the said designs. The courts will proceed to issue an injunction against the unfair company.
Under the Lanham Act, a company’s registration of a design gives constructive notice of the design to the entire nation. Thus, a company can claim the protection of their design when it registered the product’s specification with the authorities.
Notably, trademark protection for computer products lies on two major concerns: distinctiveness and functionality. Concerning distinctiveness, product designs are protected if the company can prove secondary meaning for the designs. Concerning functionality, product designs are not protected based on aesthetic functionality. This principle means that competitors have a right to copy a product’s aesthetic features for effective competition. The company can also rely on utilitarian functionality to prove that its design is essential and affects its quality.
Application of the Law
The company that seeks to protect its product designs must prove whether the product has features that distinguish it from other products in the market, whether the said features achieve a useful end, and whether the features give the product an upper hand compared to other products the market.
Conclusion
The protection of product designs is grounded on unfair competition laws. Competing companies that advertise their products must ensure that they do not cross the boundaries of trademark protection for other product designs.
REFERENCE
15 U.S. Code § 1051, 1063, 1115, 1116, 1125.
Burgunder, Lee. Legal Aspects of Managing Technology. (, 2011). South-Western Cengage Learning, 5th edition, pp. 345-365.
Traffix Devices, Inc. V. Marketing Displays, Inc. United States Supreme Court, 2001
Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. v. Samara Brothers, Inc., 529 U.S. 205 (2000).
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