Why Protect? The Associated Press vs. Frank Shephard Fairey

The most common option to protect designs to exploit them for industrial or commercial purposes is through the registration of trademarks, which allows the assurance of exclusive exploitations rights in favor of the holder of these distinctive signs.

However, another very convenient option to enforce the protection of such designs is through Copyright; which allows a broad range of options for its application, and (depending on the country concerned and if it is a State party of the Berne Convention) its scope is not limited to one territory and in certain countries is not conditioned to a registration. This protection is also useful to enforce cultural rights and even in politics.