Every business starts with an idea. That idea is an essential intellectual property asset that can drive business development, economic prosperity and human progress. While the opportunities are enormous, each business, regardless of its size, is focused on a core product or service that differentiates itself from other enterprises and competitors. Protecting an idea is protecting a business and the role that intellectual property rights’ (IPR) ownership plays cannot be underestimated in securing the future of small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

The National Directorate of Industrial Property under the Ministry of Industry, Energy and Mining of Uruguay (DNPI) has published a Practice Paper concerning the graphic representation of industrial designs.

The DNPI is the first Latin American IP office to analyse and find common ground with the criteria developed under the Common Communication on the Common Practice – Graphic Representation of Designs (CP6), referred to as ‘diseños’ (designs) in Uruguayan terminology.

To successfully protect IP in target markets, SMEs should be prepared to enforce their rights. Ultimately, only enforcement of IP rights can halt the infringements. Furthermore, in some countries such as China, if an SME builds a reputation for being litigious then malicious companies might be less likely to infringe their rights in the future. As IP is territorial, only rights that are registered in target markets can be enforced there.

For the fourth consecutive year, IP Key LA continues to offer training workshops for judges, to enhance their knowledge of the challenges to case law and legal practise related to infringements of IP rights. These training workshops in a context of international cooperation, contribute to strengthen the effective enforcement of IP rights in the region.

Spirit Design is a leading international strategic design company based in Vienna. Their team of consultants and designers assists customers in selected target industries to prepare for the future through the development and implementation of key innovation and branding strategies.

There are many benefits to living in an increasingly globalised and digitised world, such as greater connectivity, increased global trade and better information sharing. However, implicit in these benefits is a much greater potential for intellectual property rights (IPR) infringement. It is more important than ever that businesses, particularly small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), proactively take the necessary actions to mitigate this risk.