US and Japan join the Hague System
The US and Japan are the latest countries to join the Hague System for the International Registration of Industrial Designs, meaning the number of countries covered by the agreement now totals 64.
Their entering into the agreement will mean that industrial design applicants in both the US and Japan will be able to file just a single application to cover all the nations signed up to the agreement, rather than separate ones in multiple jurisdictions. Designers in other Hague countries will also have easier access to the US and Japan.
Applications can be made at the nations’ respective IP offices, the US Patent and Trademark Office and the Japan Patent Office, as well as the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), based in Geneva, Switzerland.
The agreement in both counties will go into effect on May 13, 2015. The deals were confirmed on Friday (February 13).
According to WIPO, 7.1% of the world’s design applications were made in the US and Japan in 2013 (the latest available figures).
The countries follow South Korea, which was the last nation to join the agreement, on July 1, 2014.
Francis Gurry, director general of WIPO, said: “Designers in Japan and the US can now readily protect and promote their industrial designs in dozens of other countries around the globe that are Hague members.
“And designers in those countries now have easier access to protection in two of the largest global economies. This is a win for businesses and designers everywhere and signals a major advancement for one of WIPO’s premier registry services,” he added.
