Design Economics: Maximising Value Through IP Designs Registration

The designs economy contributes around £86bn in gross value added to the UK (around 7% of UK GVA).

The designs industries employ around 1.7m people and are consistently expanding.

As the UK Government recognises, the competitiveness of the design industries and their players depends upon strong intellectual property protection for designs both in the UK and abroad.

Importantly, Brexit is viewed as an opportunity to extend, bolster and simplify the UK's design rights regime and enforcement.

Whereas the UK's designs laws needed for many years to mirror those mandated by the EU the UK is now free to diverge for the benefit of the UK design economy.

At present the intellectual property protection for designs is complicated.