A Guide for small and medium sized Australian companies
Small to medium sized Australian companies often visit domestic and international trade fairs. Trade fairs can be time and (often) sector defined marketing events at which participating Australian companies are able to showcase and market products and innovations of an industry or sector. These trade fairs are usually organised by government, chambers, industry associations, or by specialised exhibition companies.
Intellectual property theft at exhibitions and trade fairs can be a significant concern and a number of high profile trade fairs and exhibitions have started considering IP related issues more seriously. Whilst, trade fairs present tremendous opportunities for Australian companies, intellectual property related issues can also present significant concerns, which, if not addressed, can have long lasting repercussions.
Here is an easy guide for Australian companies to make sure that they don’t fall victims to IP theft.
1. Do you have an IP strategy or policy?
Most emerging Australian companies showcasing new and innovative products should have an IP strategy or policy in place to make sure that their business interests are protected. IP strategy can often be ignored or be set aside in the notional “too-hard” basket only to be revisited when IP theft has occurred.
We have seen it all too often when prospective clients come to us after having disclosed their innovative products at exhibitions or markets without pursuing IP protection. While some countries such as Australia and the USA can be forgiving to a certain extent by providing grace period provisions (limited by time), such a situation is far from ideal.
Australian companies investing capital in developing innovative products and services should definitely consider the value in recognising and, if appropriate, registering intellectual property vested in their prospective products. A good rule of thumb for assessing the value of IP protection is to consider a hypothetical scenario where the IP of the proposed product or service has been compromised and to assess the associated loss of opportunity. If the projected loss is significant for the company then companies must undertake steps for securing their IP in the proposed product or service.
2. Keep an eye on your competitors
Developing new and exciting products can be time consuming and challenging and often companies can lose sight of their competitor’s activities. Keeping an eye out on your competitors is extremely important.
Whether or not you are exhibiting at a trade fair, it is important to be observant of your competitor’s activities. If you suspect infringement of your IP rights by your competitors you should take all necessary steps to collect sufficient evidence including samples and documents of the suspected infringing product or article.
On the other hand, it is also important to take note of your competitor’s IP rights to ensure that your own company does not risk infringing the IP rights of your competitors after spending millions of dollars in developing your next product. It is always advisable to take note of any clues of your competitor’s IP rights such as Patent Numbers provided on the brochures of your competitor’s products and inform the relevant stakeholders in your company.
3. Don’t be afraid to enforce your IP rights
Most companies associate enforcement of IP rights with expensive IP litigation and often lack determination to enforce their IP rights. However, enforcement of IP rights is not limited to expensive litigation in the Courts.
If you believe that potential IP infringement needs to be addressed, try and contact organisers of the trade fair or organisation to file an official complaint. Some international large-scale trade fairs such as China’s biggest trade fair, the Canton Fair (exhibiting over 150,000 product categories) have dedicated Complaint Centres. Early action such as filing a complaint can have significant impact and in some instances can even prevent further IP infringement.
A significant advantage of filing a formal complaint is that such complaints require filling up of forms and gathering evidence which can prove to be crucial at a later stage if proof of IP infringement is required by the courts. The complaint filing procedure at an early stage often ensures that an infringement complaint can be established. All too often companies fail in their bid to raise an infringement case in the courts due to insufficient documentation (see point 2 above). Therefore, early action in enforcing your IP rights by filing complaints at trade fairs and exhibitions can be highly advantageous.
4. Seek professional advice and assistance
IP related matters can often be difficult to manage and small and medium sized enterprises can lack sufficient resources to address important IP related issues within the company. Seeking professional advice from a Patent and Trade Mark Attorney at an early stage can help companies in preventing theft of valuable IP in their products and also help in lawfully avoiding infringement of a competitor’s IP rights.
If you have any IP related questions, feel free to contact one of our attorneys.